Salad Days
by artparcoeur
Summary: Yamato and Mimi from estranged childhood acquaintances to friends, from friends to lovers; and the story in-between.
1. Reunion

**Author's Note: **Hello everyone! Here's a new Mimato fanfiction to anticipate! I present to you the first chapter of _Salad Days~_

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter One:  
_Reunion_

_28th December 2014_

He ruffled her hair and patted the head of a sobbing strawberry-maned girl. Ishida Yamato let out a heavy sigh of relief as he let go of the girl from his embrace.

"I missed all of you guys so, so much," a teary-eyed Tachikawa Mimi then reached out to the blue-haired Kido Jyou. "I was so scared I thought the plane could malfunction in any minute!"

She shared the same embrace with everyone else.

"Mimi-chan, please, you know how I hate unplanned surprises!" exclaimed Jyou. His glasses masked his angry eyes fighting his tears as he held her tight. He playfully messed her hair after they broke from each other's hold.

It was Izumi Koushiro's turn to be wrapped up by the lady's arms. His small hands and thin frame did their best to give the most reassuring hug. "Did you have your stuff with you now?" Koushiro asked, obviously trying to steer away from the sentimental stuff.

"Ahh.. yeah." mumbled Mimi. She noticed that she and Koushiro are now at the same height. She squeezed him before she let go. Yagami Hikari, whom Mimi thought of as a baby sister, had taken the curves. Puberty did her well. Hikari took the initiative to collect the seemingly-gaijin in her arms. "It's okay, Mimi nee-san!"

Takaishi Takeru, who is now inches taller than herself, looked like Yamato with enhanced charisma. He joined the embrace. "You're safe now, Mimi nee-san."

Yamato rolled his eyes; he had already foreseen this melodramatic arrival of Tachikawa Mimi, with or without a storm. He looked through the glass windows of Narita Airport. _Well, NHK definitely did not expect this,_ he thought. He could see the clouds move as if they were froth being stirred in the gloomy sky, pouring snow. He looked back at the pink-haired Mimi, all dressed up in the fashion of a true New Yorker, babbling about her "near-death" experience on board to the others, with tears liberally falling as his girlfriend Takenouchi Sora cradled her. He faintly smiled.

"Mi-chan, you can ask Sora how many times I nagged her if you're going to be okay!" said their "leader", Yagami Taichi, as he pulled her out of Sora's and hugged her. "We were terribly worried!"

"Thank you, Tai-kun.."

"We should get out of here first, before the storm worsens," said Koushiro, who was scrolling through his smartphone. "It won't get out of Japan until sixteen hours or so."

Without hesitation, they walked out of their way from the terminal, with everyone taking a piece of Mimi's luggage. Falling behind, Mimi eyed the back of their figures, taking note of the slightest changes among her friends. Familiar faces, different people. _Things have changed_, thought Mimi. _But they are good changes!_

She liked how Jyou grew out his hair and how Koushiro still looked the same, only taller. Hikari and Takeru turned out to be attractive kids. Taichi was even more attractive than the last time she saw him, and his unkempt hair and lean figure were bonuses. Sora was prettier and girlier now and is dating Yama – _where is..?_ she stopped her tracks to make a headcount, as to make sure a certain blonde haired boy wasn't missing.

"Did you forget something, Tachikawa?" came a voice behind her. Mimi looked over her shoulder. She smiled upon seeing a handsome face.

"I thought I lost you, Yamato-kun."

She always was aware of his attractiveness. She remembered how Takeru, Palmon, and the others would tease them both that they were each other's crushes during their adventure at the Digi World. She remembered an eleven-year-old Yamato, flushed in red, telling her not to misunderstand, and that they were only being paired up because they're the most attractive in the group. Although clueless of what it really implied, her ears went pink as if it heard songs when she heard him say she was the prettiest – even if it was indirectly. It was the only serious and more personal conversation they had, and the closest one to not being a series of bantering.

She suddenly felt odd. He was definitely more handsome, but the change made her feel estranged to him. If there was anything that stayed the same, it was her relationship (or the lack thereof) with the blonde. Even after America, they barely kept in touch. The only time they did talk was when she congratulated him and Sora, apart from birthday and holiday greetings. A wave of sad emotions washed over her. Maybe she was of little value to the one supposedly bearing the Crest of Friendship. Maybe it's because they're too different? Too different to invest a friendship and work it out.

_Yamato_ – he was a stranger to her, after all.

The Yamato now had his cheeks pinker and warmer. _This girl, _he thought, annoyed. _What did she mean she thought she lost me? Why does she always say the weirdest of things.._

"You are so blunt, Tachikawa." But he knew Mimi, the crest-bearer of Purity, was always like that. She was always straightforward, with a tongue of a sharpshooter. She says anything, does everything she wanted, and tells everyone how she felt, even if it was unsettling. She was simple to understand, he knew her even before she knew herself.

Mimi's doe-like eyes glared at him. He felt his cheeks warm again as her glare pierced him. She was frowning, quite upset, probably thinking why he's not so warm to her, but he just couldn't take her seriously.

"You won't look any prettier with wrinkles on your forehead," he pointed out. He masked his fascination with mockery.

"Well that's so sweet of you," retorted Mimi. Before Yamato could reply, Taichi called her out from the front.

"Mi-chan!" everyone else looked behind them. Yamato realized that he and Mimi were several yards behind the group, and it made him feel wary of it. The pink-haired Mimi skipped her way to Taichi and Sora, and latched her arms on theirs. Mimi looked back at Yamato, stuck her tongue out and gave him a playful look.

_Still the same Tachikawa,_ he thought. _But_ – she was definitely prettier, and he felt no less than guiltier when he caught Sora staring at him.

* * *

The ride back to Odaiba was anything but quiet. Mimi, Sora and Yamato sat just behind Jyou and Koushiro. Hikari, Taichi and Takeru were behind them. Taichi was loudly munching from a bag of Cheetos which he found in Mimi's luggage.

"If you manage to open my red trolley you'll find something there for you, Takeru-chan," teased Mimi, her front faced to the people at the back seat.

"But I can't open it Mi-chan. Just tell me the code of this thing!" exclaimed the younger blonde as he attempted to open Mimi's lock once again. Takeru cracked the knuckles of his left hand; he felt slightly dizzy from trying to decode Mimi's lock for thirty minutes now.

"Buuuuut it's more fun! You'll love it, I'm sure!" She turned to Hikari. "I hope you liked it Kari-chan," Hikari grew up to be interested in photography. She bought her a camera and a couple of films at a novelty shop in Brooklyn.

"Of course, I love it nee-chan," Hikari happily held a vintage Hasselblad camera on her lap. "It looks exactly like from the catalog we were looking at!"

Yamato grunted as he mentally criticized the song playing in the car. Mimi insisted everyone (him, particularly) to listen to this band she likes, The 1975. Without much of a choice Jyou had connected her iPod to his car's stereo.

The band was foreign and so was their music. He did admit, it was rather appealing, but it was hard to catch some of the words despite his better-than-most-Japanese _Engrish_ because of the vocalist's accent. _I suppose this is what the trendy people in America listen to?_ He thought. It wasn't that bad, and he gave Mimi the credit for having "decent" taste – in Yamato's standards anyway. He still preferred solid alternative or punk rock, Japanese or English – but if anything, the song somewhat suited his feelings and surroundings right now.

"Oh my God!" Takeru exclaimed. Apparently, Mimi's code was her birthday, only in backwards.

Mimi smirked.

"I knew you'd like it!"

"Like it? More like love it!"

"Gosh, Mimi, if there was such a thing as Santa Claus of the Year, hands down you're my bet!" remarked Taichi, who received a pair of limited edition Adidas cleats from the girl.

Yamato looked over to see what it was about. "What is it, Takeru?"

"Look, aniki! Mimi nee-san got me a vintage set of calligraphy nibs and a notebook. The one with The Hobbit cover!" The set looked vintage (and expensive), all right, the nibs all bronze and gold in color placed in a small antique chest; the Moleskine was larger than an ordinary notebook, and it was nutmeg in color. Mimi knew Takeru's fascination with novelty items, and that they talked about his plans for his "upcoming" epic novel over chat.

Yamato turned to Mimi and smiled in sarcasm. "You do know you can buy that for 30% off at a stationery shop in Shinjuku, right?" Mimi glared at him and was about to retort when Takeru cut in.

"It's okay, Mi-chan! I'd never buy something like this for myself even if I want to," said Takeru, grinning.

"Gee Yamato, who twisted your panties?" mocked an amused Taichi. The blonde sent him a deadpan glare.

Mimi smiled, satisfied that Takeru liked it, and proceeded to check her luggage for other gifts.

"Jyou-kun, Kou-kun, do you want to see what I have for youuuuu?" teased Mimi as she rummaged through her luggage over the car seat.

"That's lovely Mimi-chan but I am driving – and you're so noisy!" yelled out Jyou. Mimi chuckled. She always knew that was his way of affection. She got Jyou the rare medical books he was searching in all the bookstores and library databases in Japan. _Thank God Jyou's English is excellent thoug_h, thought Mimi. Else he won't be able to understand anything.

"_Buuuuut_. It's good. It's _reeeaaally_ good. What about you, Koushiro-kun?" she called out. She got Koushiro a smartwatch.

"God, Mimi-chan can be so imposing," complained Jyou to Koushiro.

"I'm not talking to you anymore, Kido! Koushiroooooo-kuuuuun what do you say?" she yelled back, already preparing to give him the gift.

"It's okay Mimi-chan, probably late.. I'm kind of busy, hehe," replied Koushiro, who was playing an RPG with phone.

"But you guuuuys….." She never kept quiet and continued to pry.

Yamato rolled his eyes. _Tachikawa. Always the same Tachikawa,_ he thought.

Sora was fast asleep, leaning on his shoulder. Her eyelashes slightly fluttering, a warning that she might wake up anytime soon. Her breathing was rather heavy, though. She didn't get enough sleep after all. Yamato frowned as he recalled the events of yesterday evening. Now sound in mind, Yamato realized that maybe they were both wrong. That, or both of them are right, which meant worse if it was the latter.

Yamato held the auburn girl tighter. He won't –

"Yamato-kun!"

His line of thought was cut off, his emotionless eyes meeting Mimi's. "Here you go!" the pink-haired held out a rather smaller box. Unsure, Yamato stared at it and looked at Mimi again.

"Oh come on, just take it already," she grunted. Yamato took it and stuttered his thanks. Though he didn't have a clue what Mimi got him, but judging from what she gave to the others, he was sure it was something he will ogle at – and he didn't want her to see him lose his cool. He stuffed the box inside his guitar case.

"And Yamato-kun, could you give this to Sora-chan when she wakes up?" said Mimi as she threw him a smaller white box.

Yamato shook the box, trying to figure out what's inside.

"Hey! Don't do that!" yelled Mimi. She got Sora a chain necklace from a jewelry shop at the Upper East Side.

"Make sure you give it to Sora-chan, okay?" Mimi snugged up to the sleeping Sora, unconscious and clueless of everything.

Yamato just stared. The image felt rather peculiar. He realized he was never fond of seeing Sora and Mimi together.

"So, Mimi-chan," said Taichi, who was already eating up the rest of Mimi's snacks. "Which high school are you going to?"

"The same where you guys go, of course.. Why? You don't want me there?" she pouted.

"Nothing really. I guess we can all hang out just like we used to.. Except for Jyou, of course."

"I'm quite free 'til Spring," said Jyou.

"Yokatta! Good timing! I won't be entering school 'til springtime,"

"Sugoi! We can meet up after school then," said Hikari. "But what are you going to do for the time being, Mi-chan?"

_Oh yeah, they still have school.._ thought Mimi. She felt a bit left out and alone, not knowing what she'd do next after the winter break. Now that Sora has Yamato too, she won't be able to spend much time with her best friend.

"I don't know yet, but I'm sure Sora and Yamato will gladly accompany me," she teased. Yamato flinched upon hearing his name, and glared at her.

"Naaaaah – don't, Mimi. I swear being a third wheeler with those two sucks," disagreed Taichi, whom had several experiences being with the couple. Mimi sensed some bitterness, but maybe it was just her.

"It'd be nice if you'd get a girlfriend as well, Taichi." Yamato teased.

_Wrong move, Yamato,_ thought Jyou, Koushiro, Hikari, Takeru – even Mimi.

"Well I was _supposed _to have one, if you can recall." Hikari nudged his brother by the elbow. Taichi let out a sigh.

"What is this? This is very childish." said an angry and confused Yamato.

"Aniki." Warned Takeru.

_What the hell_, the older blonde thought. And here he reckoned he and Taichi were over **that**. He turned away to watch the snow. _Ahh. What am I saying… I can't blame him for feeling this way._

The air grew dead, tense, and cold.

_Well, this sure is awkward,_ Takeru thought. Already sensing the bidding danger, he broke in.

"Well, Kari-chan and I aren't that busy, Mi-chan," said the younger blonde. Mimi fixated her smile.

"Arigato na. And because of that, I'll treat you both to places! I want to try out the new restaurants downtown!"

She turned to her side to check up on her friend.

_Thank God Sora's asleep,_ thought Mimi. She looked over to Sora's side – Yamato staring out of the window. She tried to check out Jyou and Koushiro on front. She peeked behind, Hikari and Takeru trying out the gifts she gave them; Taichi had his eyes shut, trying to fall asleep.

She bit her lip and looked out through the window, watching other vehicles pass through the pile of snow. The rest of the trip came into silence, with nothing else but the songs in her iPod.

_Things really have changed._

* * *

**Author's Note:** I know they should be adults by 2015, but I wanted to set their teenage years (they're around ages 16-17 in the story, Takeru and Hikari being 14 and Jyou being 18) at this time around because I want to play with their teenage characters set at this sort of time. I don't know, I just think this kind of setting is refreshing to the Digimon fanfiction community (particularly the Mimato community, since there seems to be a shortage of new fics every year).

Anyway, it's evident Taichi and Yamato have been having a rocky friendship ever since; Sora and Yamato's relationship is delicate right now; and Mimi's freshly-realized distance with Yamato alerts her. Yamato does care for Mimi, and does see her as a friend – but he is yet to realize that he isn't really being a friend to her at all. This story will hopefully establish the lack of evidence that their friendship existed the series, and develop it into something more. I assure that this is a romantic Mimato, and we'll get there.

Please review, it will be a big motivation for continuing the story! Thank you, everyone and keep on Mimato~~!


	2. A Strange Change

**Author's Note: **I didn't really expect a lot for the first chapter but I'm glad some are enjoying this so far, and knowing that is enough to keep writing this. To those who reviewed, thank you very much! Here's chapter two!

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**Salad Days**

Chapter Two  
_A Strange Change_

"Well, that's the last one," said Taichi as he put down one of Mimi's belongings.  
"I'm so tired, I think I need some painkillers," said Jyou, sitting down at the staircase. A little while, they took off the white sheets that covered the furniture and other fixtures of the house.

Yamato looked around Mimi's old house. The white paint had already faded over the years, turning into cream. It was only in the living room and bathroom where he reached in the old Tachikawa residence. He and Mimi weren't that close for him to go upstairs – unlike Taichi or Jyou.

He remembered going here with Taichi, Jyou, Koushiro, and Sora to fetch Mimi. Mrs. Tachikawa will offer them snacks, while Mr. Tachikawa will teasingly ask which of them Mimi's boyfriend is. Of course, Taichi will automatically respond out of nervousness and throw either him or Jyou as the bait. Mr. Tachikawa would laugh and threaten him not to hurt their little princess. Even now, he still wasn't sure if he was just joking. Mimi would go down, cladded in pink, and they'll leave the house once she kisses her parents goodbye.

Yamato snapped back from his thoughts as Sora called him.

"Are you alright, Yama-kun?" asked the now fully-energized ginger. He was growing anxious. He and Sora hadn't talked about their problems yet. He wasn't really sure how to act normal.

"Yeah.. I am. You feeling better?"

"Yeah.. I had some sleep earlier."

"Oh yeah, I need to give you something,"

"What is it?"

"It's from Mimi. She handed it to me earlier, said I should give it to you." Answered Yamato, as he took out the box.

Sora hesitantly took it and slowly opened. She felt mixed when she saw what was inside. Disappointed it wasn't from Yamato, but happy it was from Mimi. She has to thank Mimi for this. Mimi always thought about her despite that their friendship struggled with long distance relationship. But now that she's back, she swore to herself she'll make up for their lost time.

"Sora," hesitated Yamato, as his hand scratched his nape. "about yesterday.." he wanted to say something, but he was too afraid this would be another _ratatatatata_ –

The girl sighed. "Yesterday.. I'm sorry I got angry."

"No, I should be the one who's apologizing. I'm really sorry."

"It's just that I didn't think it was going to be a big deal for you,"

"You know how I feel about it…"

"He's my friend too, Yamato." Her voice grew stern.

"I know he is," he assured, still feeling blue. "I just don't know how to feel when you two are together alone. You were with him at a park, dead midnight."

Sora breathed heavily and looked around to check if they're being eavesdropped. Everyone else was on their own, resting, while Mimi was in the kitchen to prepare some snacks.

"We were friends before this. We were all friends – you, me, and Taichi. And I wanted to be something more to you. Isn't that what should matter to you? I chose you, Yamato."

"And he chose you."

An angry Sora was like a time bomb. But she won't fuse today – not with Yamato's aggravation, and definitely not on front of everybody. She stared at her red sneakers. She didn't want to say it, but she had been thinking a lot of it recently, since they started getting in this rough patch.

"Did you even wonder if you actually _'chose'_ me?" she asked in a whisper. "That's enough for today. I'm going to help Mimi with the food. Let's talk again soon." She added, not letting Yamato make her reach her tipping point. Without another word from him she went on her way to the kitchen.

_That definitely didn't go well_, Yamato thought as he leaned against the wall. His gaze caught Taichi's empty eyes staring back at him.

* * *

"I'm sorry it's taking so long," apologized Mimi, as she stirred a bowl of melted chocolate. Sora smiled and shook her head.

"It's fine Mimi-chan. Everyone's getting rest. What exactly are we going to do with this though?" asked Sora, pointing out to the several bricks of chocolate.

"I'm making hot cocoa. The Spanish way!" she exclaimed. The redhead chuckled.

"What? It's true. This is how they do it... when there's no cocoa powder." giggled Mimi, as she minced them into smaller pieces. Sora took some bricks and chopped some too.

"Aren't there too many of this, Mi-chan?"

"Are they?"

"It feels so."

"I hoarded them from a pastry shop back at New York because, because, _because_, Sora-chan this is the best chocolate ever and I will make you fat with this! I remembered gaining five pounds last winter because of this!"

The redhead heartily laughed. She really missed being with Mimi. For the most part, Sora owed her for teaching her the 'girly stuff' that soon she had found useful. Right when Mimi left, she made a habit of pampering herself. Her relationship with her dearest mother already healed, but it still felt odd to bond with her. More importantly, she really couldn't bring herself to talk about boys with her mother. Sora remembered one time that she, Mimi, and Hikari had a sleepover at her place. She remembered how she used to secretly fancy her best friend Taichi, and how Mimi complained a lot about the boys – Jyou's too anxious, Koushiro's too serious, Yamato's too different; she'd follow this usually with an advice for Hikari, which Takeru might grow into a smart boy, and therefore she should catch up with him. Hikari will usually be interested but then retreat to a blank expression.

Anyway, Sora grew out of her fancy eventually – but this was definitely a thorn in Yamato's side.

A weak smile on her face –_ we were just kids_.

Mimi was relieved Sora was already awake. With Sora having spent the whole ride asleep, Mimi could only do nothing else but interact with the rest and cope with their changes. The sudden metamorphoses of everyone else seemed to have taken her aback. Takeru and Hikari grew out of their little shoes, no longer the kids whom she played hide and seek with – they're now smitten with each other instead. Jyou – oh, good 'ol Jyou – back then she only thought of him as a kid trying to be mature. But now here he is, a medical student at one of the most refined schools in Japan. And lastly, what bothered her most out of today, was the painfully obvious rift between Taichi and Yamato. She thought that throughout the countless times they swore each other off to hell, and punched each other in the face, they'd still be as strong as ever. Koushiro and Sora didn't seem to change.

With that, she was anxious to ask Sora about the goings-on.

"Ne, Sora-chan, how are things going?" It wasn't that she didn't have a clue—but her being away for three-to-four years still made her feel she missed out a lot.

"What do you mean what's going on? As you can see, Sora is Sora as Japan is Japan," assured Sora.

"I haven't seen everyone for a long time though. And I haven't talked much to anyone else except you, Jyou, and Takeru, when I was in New York. I didn't have much time to log on to my laptop often since Michael, Cat and I always go around the boroughs – and my parents always take me to their out-of-town trips," told Mimi. The redhead stared as the strawberry-haired girl kept on talking. Mimi got more down-to-earth, no longer the high-pitched, pushover Mimi, but she was still bubbly as ever. She really did seem to have a wonderful time, and America did really well with her. In fact, Sora slightly felt like this best friend of hers is a foreigner, with her pink hair and Vogue-catalogue-ish get-up. _Not that Mimi looked weirder than the people in Harajuku.._ Sora giggled at the thought. She didn't have the words to describe Mimi, but certainly it wasn't just her clothes.

"Well enough about me, Sora-chan! How are things here, what have I missed apart from you and Yama's lovey-dovey togetherness?" Mimi asked with enthusiasm. Sora paused chopping the cocoa and sighed.

Mimi looked at Sora. She felt like she accidentally stepped on a stray kitten with her stiletto. "Sora-chan?"

Sora felt her eyes watering. _Ahh. Not here.. Oh.. Come on._ She reprimanded herself. Maybe she did have to tell this to someone.

"You sure have a way in keeping your tongue held," told Takeru to his brother. He, Yamato, and Hikari were sitting on the couch, just adjacent to the other where Koushiro, Taichi and Jyou were sleeping.

"You know I didn't mean it that _way_," replied Yamato.

"I know, but you know.. Since you and Sora got together, Taichi-kun acts like you broke up with him," said Takeru matter-of-factly as he turned to Hikari. "What does Taichi-san tell you, Kari-chan?"

"Nothing, really. He doesn't tell me anything at all even if I ask. I asked onii-chan once on how he felt with Yama-kun and Sora-chan. He said he's _cool_ with it," Said Hikari, glancing at her brother. "Although, it's evident he's not cool with it at all." She added.

"I asked him about that too, even before dating Sora. He said the same thing," said Yamato. "Why can't he just be sincere with it to begin with? Seriously.. I don't know what to do." He said, slapping his palm on his forehead.

Hikari and Takeru sighed out of helplessness.

"They were together yesterday." The older blonde whispered, his eyes covering the back of his hand.

"What do you mean?"

"They went to Ueno Park. At the dead of the night."

"Why? And how did you find out?"

"I don't know. Sora said she just bumped on him while she was on her way home. She phoned me right after."

"So what's the problem?"

Yamato fell silent before saying – "I got jealous? Then we fought about it."

Takeru sighed. "But you do know they're also best friends.. They've been friends longer than you and Taichi are."

"I know.. But.."

"But what?"

Yamato removed his hand from his face. He was now staring at the ceiling. _Mimi will be cleaning up a lot_, he thought. He looked at Takeru.

"But, I always feel that Sora always liked Taichi more." The older blonde breathed. The younger Yagami wrinkled her brows. How could that even be? If Sora did love her brother more, they would have been together already – _but no. Yamato-kun, you are wrong, _she thought.

"I hope you don't mind me saying this, but I am confused and disturbed at how you got to that conclusion, Yamato-kun." said Hikari.

The older blonde let out another sigh. He just didn't have the words. "It's hard to say. It's a gut feeling."

Taichi woke up and suddenly stood from his seat. With a glance at his best friend, he turned around to go to the kitchen. Not for long Jyou and Koushiro woke up.

_He might have heard us_, Yamato wondered. _Wait_, it doesn't matter if he did.

Takeru raised a brow as Hikari rolled her eyes away. "My dear brother, you have a terrible intuition," commented Takeru.

Yamato didn't expect much of them to understand. He really needed someone _appropriate_ to talk to about this. Maybe Jyou? _Nah.._ he thought. It should be someone with relationship experience.

Another sigh. He couldn't say it out loud, but it was just so painfully obvious for him that Sora likes Taichi. It's the glint in her eyes that tell him all. _That_, or he's just really a jealous bastard. This fact surprisingly took him aback. _This feeling is so fucked up.._

"Sorry to keep you guys waiting. I've already turned on the floor heater," Mimi entered the room, carrying a tray with mugs. "Thank you so much for fetching me. Especially to Jyou-kun," she said, placing the tray on the dusty table.

"It's fine Mimi-chan. But really. I do hope you'll tell me at least two days earlier next time!" said Jyou, who was only informed of her return by a call from Taichi this early morning. He had to cancel his meeting with the researchers back at the university. Sora came out of the kitchen with the snacks. Not for long, Taichi followed.

Yamato looked away. He made up his mind that he definitely won't be dealing with Sora for the rest of the day. His eyes fixated on Mimi instead.

"I wonder if the telly still works.." muttered Mimi, plugging in the old TV box and fixing the antenna.

"I can't believe you're back here again, Mi-chan," said Koushiro. Mimi got up from the floor and took the remote control. "I can't believe it too, I thought I was going to stay in America for good," she grinned.

"Why did you come back though?" asked Koushiro after taking a gulp of the hot chocolate from the mug. "You never really told anyone why, specifically."

"I asked."

"You asked to come back?"

"Yeah."

"But why?"

"I just wanted to."

"So your parents were definitely okay with you living here alone in Japan?"

"Yep."

Koushiro raised an eyebrow. "That's strange.." _It is, because it wasn't okay, _thought Mimi. But she already made up her mind not to tell anyone.

"Strange indeed, but Mi-chan seems to have grown up into a fine, young lady," taunted Taichi as he posed in a girly fashion. "because seriously, Mimi, you look quite funny." Everyone actually agreed on that point.

The television was still functioning, thank goodness. Mimi flipped it on NHK Newsline for weather report. She glared at Taichi. "Now what does that supposed to mean?!"

"I think he meant the way you dress," said Jyou.

"Or the way you talk," said Takeru, noting on her Japanese. Mimi's pronunciation of the consonant "l" was so perfect she couldn't let out a strong "r" sound anymore.

"Or your mannerisms, because you're using a lot of hand gestures so far," said Hikari.

"It's the hair," pointed out Yamato. He still wasn't used to her pink hair.

Mimi scrunched her brows, showing the well-known Tachikawa scowl. Sora laughed. "Well, you still look pretty even when you do that, Mimi-chan." Said Sora, taking a seat beside Jyou.

"In what way am I funny? I'm just wearing this designer trench coat! Yes, I know, I started wearing clothes that are not pink. And I still am speaking in Japanese, aren't I? And what's wrong with my behavior? Do I use a lot of hand gestures now? I blame Michael on that if ever. Also, what's so wrong with my hair, it's always been pink! People all over this country do it!" exclaimed Mimi.

"Well, you don't look Japanese at all now," teased Koushiro. "Not saying it's a bad thing though." He added.

"It's not like you guys haven't changed too you know," Mimi pointed out, restraining to be an emotional ball of feelings.

"Well, you were away for three years... we did grow up and went through puberty but nothing drastic," replied Taichi. "but be chill, you look really nice."

Mimi smiled at Taichi and sat next to Takeru, who was also beside Yamato. The group fell silent as they watched the news.

"Huh. Shoji Mai looks prettier," commented Mimi as she watched the weather reporter.

"She's always been like that," smirked Yamato. "Tachikawa, you're so strange."

Mimi didn't reply. Apart from the shock that Yamato was the one who replied to her compliment, she also didn't have the words with his statement.

"Well, more importantly, the weather doesn't look friendly," said Jyou. "We should go home."

"Easy for you to say, Jyou-kun. You just live at the other end of the street!" exclaimed Taichi. Taichi (along with Hikari), Sora, and Takeru lived at the other side of town. Yamato's was a couple of blocks away but just in a walking distance. Koushiro lived in the same street as Yamato's.

Sora turned to Mimi. "Will you be okay alone, Mi-chan? I could accompany you here and help you fix your things," the redhead offered. She needed a distraction. She thought it would be better for her to stay away from thinking about her blonde-haired, blue-eyed lover tonight.

"Is it Sora-chan? Is it? Are you sure? Okay!" Mimi grabbed Sora by the shoulders and hugged her.

"Can I tag along too, Mimi-chan, Sora-chan?" pleaded Hikari.

"Wait, that means I should stay here too!" cut in Taichi. Excitement filled in Mimi. She thought of a seemingly brilliant idea: "Why don't we all sleep over! The guys could use my parents' old room while we girls stay in my old room. And I'll just call in for pizza!"

_I doubt there's delivery service with this storm_, thought Yamato. The snow was already reached the elevated garden at the front porch, about two-feet deep.

"I'm okay with it. What about you, aniki?" asked Takeru. He was enthusiastic as Mimi. This was the first time they'd all be together again.

"I guess I don't have a choice," the older blonde replied. Yamato won't admit it, but he liked the idea too.

"It's like camping again. Back during the days at the DigiWorld," said Koushiro. Silence came when everyone felt spot on. Yamato let himself a small smile. Like him, Koushiro never said much. But when he did, he knew the right words.

Jyou sighed, feeling defeated. He wasn't going to complain tonight though. Koushiro was right. Today felt exactly the same – the days when he still felt young. "Fine," Jyou agreed. He glanced at the ceiling and horror painted his face. "But we should definitely clean up. I don't want to get allergies!"

* * *

**Author's Note: **Yes, I gave Yamato and Taichi very ugly flaws, and not Sora (but of course, she's not perfect either). I am really bothered at how all three of them were so "cool" with it. While some loved and found perfection with it, I think there's a really interesting flipside on the whole Yamato/Sora/Taichi love triangle – because based from their characterizations alone (along with potential behavior), a Sorato break-up may still have happened, and Taichi/Sora may still have happened (without anyone being a rebound). Anyway I know I'm just rambling right now, but I'm going to try my best to make that idea more understandable with this story. As for the pairing Mimato, I still don't understand how they can be too incompatible for romance. Yamato may be reclusive while Mimi might be a social butterfly, and yes, they lacked a lot of screen time in terms of canon, but that doesn't mean they can't connect on a romantic level. I'm trying to write something that even if Digimon Adventure Tri will just push more of Sorato, this story can still be enjoyable and make Mimato fans feel that being a supporter of this camp is not crazy and foolish (pardon my ramblings, I will continue this rant in the next chapter).

I'm realizing how this story is quite slow-paced. I intended to take things slow at the beginning before the really juicy Yamato and Mimi moments, but I think I need to find balance to it, since I have come to find out that I write really long chapters (I'm already working on chapter 4, chapter 3 just needs a little bit of editing)– I am just as excited as you guys are to find some Mimato moments, after all. :-)

I'm all in for your reviews, suggestions, comments. Again, thanks for reading! Keep on Mimato!


	3. Small Talks, Long Conversations

**Author's Note:** I'm glad there are people who like the premise of this story so far. I'm really going to try my best to make the most out of this. It's been a while since I've written anything fiction. I don't have much to say for this chapter, but I do hope you will all like it. I suck at giving titles, but oh well.I hope to frequently update this fan fiction as much as I've been doing. Enjoy reading! :-)

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Three  
_Small Talks, Long Conversations_

Koushiro already called in his favorite ramen stall – which was just a few blocks away – to deliver some food. The pile of snow was already three-feet deep. Weather reports from the TV predicted that the storm will last 'til four in the morning. In the same room, Taichi, Yamato, Takeru, and Hikari were dusting the ceiling and floor. _I smell war_. Koushiro wished Sora or Mimi was here, at least. With a broom on hand, he went to the unoccupied old reading room.

"I disagree, I think it tried too hard on being badass," replied Hikari as she swept the floor. Takeru, who was also sweeping the other side of the room, stopped and walked towards Hikari.

"I can't believe you're telling this to me now, a week ago you said you liked it," said Takeru.

"I only said it because you kept talking while I was watching it," he definitely ruined the film for her, with his excessive fawning and what-not.

"How can you think it's trying too hard? It was amazing!"

"I don't know, I didn't understand anything about it. And most of the stuff you made me watch were hard to understand," frowned Hikari. Well, she did understand, but it would have been difficult if she didn't pay a huge amount of attention.

"They're foreign films, it's always open to interpretation," argued Takeru. Yamato, while dusting the ceiling, overheard their conversation. _No.. Takeru, you won't win her like this_, snickered Yamato. His little brother was a smart kid. He likes to read and watch a lot. From anime, manga, and Western superheroes, he had grown to read Japanese classics and English literary canon, and now watches fancy films from obscure Europe. He's quite mature for his age too. Their time together at the DigiWorld made him believe that. He gave a lot of good advice several times. Yamato reckoned it was the effect of divorce. Unlike him, Takeru didn't turn out to be angsty. He was always looking forward for everything.

"Kari-chan, I was reading this book about a little orphaned girl in Nazi Germany.."

_Anyway_, it was obvious he was making Hikari like the same things he does.

Yamato looked over at the other end of the room. His best friend Taichi had his headphones on as he dusted the ceiling. He made his best attempt to ignore this weird predicament in his head.

"Takeru, come over here," called out Yamato. Takeru did as he was told.

"What is it?"

The older brother's voice lowered to a whisper. "Do you think I should talk to Mimi about Sora?"

The younger brother was much more confused. "Why on earth will you do that? That's like trespassing enemy territory,"

"I hell know she's Sora's best friend and probably the one to assassinate me if she ever finds out I make Sora cry," mocked Yamato, but still in a hush. "I just don't know how I could ever understand Sora and Taichi's relationship at this point right now,"

"You're really behaving out of character, aniki,"

"Just because I'm the Crest bearer of Friendship doesn't mean I have to be everyone's best friend,"

"Well, you and Mimi aren't close enough for _solicited advice_,"

"I know we aren't,"

Takeru suspiciously eyed him. "I wonder.. if you still ever.."

"No, I don't,"

"Yeah, right, but I had a little crush on her too when I was a kid," explained Takeru. "In fact, I still do, but just in a really platonic way, and I don't ever want anyone else to find that out," he warned, hinting on Hikari.

"I think it's safe to assume every guy in this house right now did," grunted Yamato.

Takeru smiled, smitten. It was true all of them actually fancied Mimi when they were children. The fact that he and Mimi were already close then was good enough for him. With due respect to Sora, he did think Mimi was the prospective girlfriend for his dear brother if only she didn't move away. He also used to think Sora and Taichi were deeply in love until Sora became his brother's girlfriend. _Alas, everyone else's fantasies' shattered,_ thought Takeru.

He was the reason everyone back then paired Yamato and Mimi up.

"_Mimi-chan is so nice," said seven-year-old Takeru as he held the sweet drops Mimi gave him. His other hand was clasped on to Yamato's. "Here you go, Patamon," said Takeru as he reached on to his head. Patamon ate the drop. "Yeah, this is so tasty, Takeru!"_

"_Look onii-chan, Mimi-chan gave this to me," he said proudly, showing off his newly acquired box of sweet drops. "That's great, Takeru," replied Yamato. He looked up at his older brother's handsome, young face, and then turned his head around to look at Mimi's. _

"_Onii-chan, I think you and Mimi-chan look good together." He said out loud._

"_What are you talking about, Takeru?" asked an expressionless Yamato as they walked into the woods._

"_I think both of you look good together," said Takeru. Gabumon, also beside Yamato, thought for it in a while. "I think so too, Yamato,"_

"_Hnn. I don't think so, Gabumon."_

"_Why? You don't like Mimi-chan?" _

_A pause. "No It's not like that. I like her."_

"_So why don't you think you two will look good together?"_

"_What kind of question is that now, Takeru?"_

"_You said you like her,"_

"_Yeah Yamato, you said you did," assured Gabumon. Yamato frustratingly scratched his head, worried someone else might hear. The subject of the conversation was also just behind them. "That's enough,"_

"_But I want you and Mimi-chan together," Takeru exclaimed, enough for Taichi to hear. The young Yagami, who was leading the group, turned around to look at Yamato. _

"_Yamato-kun," called out Taichi playfully. This will be fun, he thought._

_And now things are starting to worry Yamato. "Taichi-kun," he replied, trying to keep his cool._

"_Mimi-chan," called out Taichi. Mimi, who was mentally singing a song, bobbed her head. "Ne, Tai-kun?"_

"_Yamato-kun has something to tell you," the brunette teased._

"_Ooohh! What is it, Yamato-kun?"_

"_No I don't," said Yamato sharply, not liking where this is going._

"_Don't deny it Yamato, I know you do!" said Gabumon. The fact that Gabumon was taking it seriously worried him._

_Taichi laughed. "Everyone! Yamato-kun has a crush on Mimi-chan!" _

His brother ended up fuming and blushing in red; Mimi, on the other hand, clueless and curious. Takeru giggled. It was a very fond memory of his.

"You did like her, though," whispered Takeru. Yamato just shrugged. He _did_, and he remembered planning to be close friends with her, to be a part of her seemingly perfect life and that maybe she could share some of that perfection with him, even if he doesn't end up becoming her lover. Oh yes, he was planning to – but all of those had stopped when she broke the news of her departure.

"Koushiro-kun, I think the delivery guy's here already," that was the only thing Taichi said in that room. Yamato looked out at the window and saw a familiar face from his neighborhood. Koushiro came out of the reading room and ruffled his bag for money.

"Hmm.. I wonder... _what if_ she stayed.." muttered Takeru inaudibly, but Yamato caught him. He said no more about it.

"Anyway, I'm still going to try whatever there is," said Yamato. He has Sora now, and he would do anything for her. Heaven or hell he'd be with her – he just has to keep them from falling apart. They just had to stay together, and wish Sora could keep on believing in that.

Takeru smiled, satisfied. "Okay, aniki," He walked back to Hikari, leaving Yamato lingering on that 'what if' for a moment.

* * *

Three hours passed when they finished cleaning most of the Tachikawa residence, dusk had already fallen, and the temperature had dropped several degrees. The ramen had already gone lukewarm. They decided to 'remedy' the 'tasteless' ramen (as Taichi had said, much to Koushiro's dismay) as Takeru, Jyou, and Hikari went out to the nearest _konbini_ for some ingredients. They arrived shortly, freezing and possibly suffering from mild frostbite (proceeded with immediate warming), as the rest of the group had decided who will do the 'remedy' after several series of high-pitched squabbles and swearing.

_Awkward_ was the perfect word to describe Yamato and Mimi right now.

Mimi kept asking herself why Yamato volunteered to cook with her. They weren't close, Yamato always seemed apathetic with her – it didn't make sense. What made it more awkward was that she knew a lot of stuff about him, thanks to Sora. She tried to concentrate on the soup and be natural with him. She glanced to his side.

"Yamato-kun, I think you shouldn't do that,"

"I know what I'm doing."

The other felt much weirder. Takeru was right, this was odd of him. His relationship with Mimi was complicated – to him, at least. He breathed in and out. "Mi-"

"Yamato-kun," Mimi had cut him off. _Brilliant_. Now he won't have to initiate the conversation, thought Yamato. "Did you like my gift?"

_Oh, yeah.._ he thought. "No,"

The brunette was appalled. How could he even say that so bluntly! She really had a hard time finding a gift for him and now he says he didn't like it – so much for appreciation. "Ishida how can you even not—"

"I haven't opened it yet," added the boy.

She only managed to say, "Oh,"

Yamato smirked. "What is it anyway?"

Mimi stared at him with enthusiasm. "Oh Yamato-kun, I'm so positive you'd like it!"

"How sure are you that I will?"

"A hundred and one percent. I know because I just know it!"

"I'm guessing it's something related to my music," he teased.

"Oh, you got that right, but I won't tell anymore. And don't try to spoil it!" exclaimed Mimi, as she stirred the soup. This was perhaps one of the rarest (if not the first) moments she smiled at him. She was pretty to look at.

"That band earlier, what were they called again?" asked Yamato, trying to keep up a conversation with her as he prepare for the stuff to put in the ramen.

"The 1975," answered Mimi. "they're one of the hottest bands right now in America," The blonde could already tell she was fangirling.

"Hmm. They sound... unique,"

Mimi giggled. "They do.. but so do most musicians right now,"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the music trend in the West right now is to sound unique," explained Mimi. " but all are trying so hard to sound unique, some of them come to sound the same,"

Yamato cocked his brow. "Which artists do you think I'd like?" he asked.

Mimi paused for a bit as she sipped the soup.

"Hmm. Let me see.." Mimi looked up to recall. She remembered going to a lot of concerts and underground bars. Her friend Cat Deneauve always brought her stacks of vinyl records to listen to. "What genre do you listen to?"

"All of them, Tachikawa."

"Hmm. I always thought you only listen to punk rock.. you know.. high pitched voices and simpler guitar notes, lots of rebellious song lyrics, 'I-don't-give-a-fuck' kind-of-music,"

Yamato cringed when he heard her curse. It just didn't suit her – but he remained quiet about it. "I don't just listen to those. I'm a music lover. Now, what do you have for me?"

"Well, I think of you listening to Arctic Monkeys.. Kasabian.. Interpol.. stuff like that," said Mimi.

"I have already listened to those," answered Yamato. He gave her credit for judging him right with his music taste. "Takeru listens to a lot of foreign bands,"

Mimi wondered if Takeru got off his music taste from hers, since they spent a lot of time chatting over Western music, movies, and what-not. "Oh, is that so? I have a friend and her name is Cat Deneauve, she's French but she moved in. I think she and Takeru-kun already met along with Tai-kun – but anyway, she's one of my best friends back at New York and she always took me to local music bars. I didn't have any interest with such musicians unless they're Madonna or Gaga, but I like them now," chattered Mimi. "How's the Teenage Wolves by the way? I check out your Bandcamp page every now and then. Michael says you guys are good, though he doesn't understand Japanese,"

"We're good. I haven't written any new material yet though. There are the big record labels already harassing us to sign with them, but I prefer our current one," answered Yamato. His band is currently signed in Hydeout Productions, an independent label.

Mimi nodded. She's still surprised that they're talking, getting excited. _This is a freaking record breaker,_ she thought. But despite the overwhelming feeling, she felt more comfortable with Yamato right now.

"Anyway, I know some places around here where you can listen to underground Japanese music. I took Sora and Takeru once, but Sora didn't like it. Nowadays I only bring Takeru and sometimes my band, we could hang out.. if you want," said Yamato. "Also, you really need to Japan-ize yourself back," he playfully added.

"You really think I drastically changed?" asked Mimi in remorse.

"Well.." he looked at her head to toe. _Radical_. "Yeah."

"Okay, now I'm depressed."

"Why?"

"I've been feeling everyone has changed, and I feel left out and alienated, it's a weird feeling because I don't know – I never felt this way before,"

"You changed a lot," affirmed Yamato. "But that doesn't mean it's a bad thing,"

"How can that even be?"

Yamato didn't know if he should say it, but_ oh fuck it, here're the beans_: "I mean, I think you look really cool right now,"

"What cool? Don't do all Japanese people think of that towards foreigners and Japanese who lived in America?" laughed out Mimi.

"Well, you do have a better sense of style now, growing up from all that pink. And you're pretty right—" the thought had been running all day long in his mind, trying not to let it slip, especially to her, but alas, he had.

Mimi heard and she knew what exactly followed.

"What do you mean right now? Wasn't I that pretty back then?" she playfully pouted.

"I mean – you were – before – I just mean.." flushed in red, he felt so embarrassed he wanted to slice his fingers instead. _Oh God I fucking stammered. I just stammered. _He suddenly remembered why he chose to be particularly detached from her. She was such a tease_. Still is, _he thought.

Teary-eyed Mimi blushed and smiled at him. This could have been the best thing she got from coming back – Yamato's care. "Ahhh. Okay. I was being emotional I guess. I missed everyone else so much and I didn't know what's been going on with your lives, I feel so much like a stranger," Yamato couldn't believe she was actually wiping away her tears. "But thank you, Yamato-kun. Sora-chan is really lucky to have you."

Yamato's heart started to skip upon the mention of his lover's name. Anxiety was again kicking in. He wanted to ask Mimi so badly.

"Tachikawa," he said. Mimi turned to look at him, as if she already knew.

Yamato sighed as he put down the kitchen knife and ran his hand through his messy hair. "I don't know if Sora told you, but we're not really in a good –"

"I know." She cut him off. Yamato wasn't surprised she did. There was a long silence until Mimi broke in with a sympathetic smile.

"Oh dear Yamato-kun," she placed her hand on his shoulder. "I know you really love Sora-chan, and that she loves you too, and I think that's what matters," she assured.

"I really do," he said softly as trouble painted his face. "I just can't understand at all. Her and Taichi. I don't. I used to, but now that Sora and I are together, I don't know. And I feel so bad for even feeling this way because they're both important to me,"

Mimi tried to shake away her feeling of surprise. She couldn't believe that here was Yamato, opening up to her. It's been years and this was what all it took. Mimi shook her head. _But that's unimportant right now_, thought Mimi.

"Sora-chan and Tai-kun had always been best of friends, even before we went to the DigiWorld. I think they're both really important to each other, too. One of them just happened to feel something more," said Mimi. "But Yamato-kun, that's no longer Sora-chan's or your concern. That's Tai-kun's problem. He needs to be at peace with you guys being together and with his feelings. And hopefully, he'd move on." She felt sorry for Taichi, but everything just felt inevitable and unaccounted. "It's no one's fault.." she added in a whisper.

_That's what I've been trying to tell myself too_, thought Yamato. "I just feel that Taichi hates me now," confessed Yamato. "I don't know what he's thinking at all. We tried to be normal, even hanging out together with just the three of us. You know, like we used to. But it's just obvious he doesn't feel good about it, and he doesn't even say it to me. So whenever he's with Sora alone, I feel guarded."

Mimi bit her lip. "I think you should just – you just have to accept that they're both important to each other. I don't think you can blame Tai-kun for having feelings for her. As long as he's not trying to ruin your relationship, then all is fine," she assured. "Because if Tai-kun does, I'll beat him to a pulp," she added in a jokingly manner.

Yamato faintly chuckled. He felt a bit shy after the sudden vent, his cheeks turning warmer. "Ahhh.. Thanks for that." But that was what he had needed, and he finally let it out. "I do hope things work out the way you say,"

The brunette smiled. This was definitely a good sign. She winked at him. "Now aren't you just glad I'm conveniently here?" She opened the cupboard for soup bowls. Yamato, being taller, took them out before she did.

"Yeah right," he replied, trying to scoff her. But today felt suddenly a good day for Yamato, with this newly-found amity with Mimi. "Welcome home, Tachikawa."

Not for long they served dinner and returned to the group afterwards. They talked about their lives, and Mimi talked about hers more. Taichi, Yamato, and Sora sat apart from each other, obviously trying to avoid one another. Naught was mentioned about the three of them, hoping not to stimulate anger. It wasn't until three in the morning they all decided to sleep, going upstairs to Mr. and Mrs. Tachikawa's, and Mimi's bedrooms. Everyone but Yamato slept in. And when they did, he decided to open Mimi's little gift.

It was a personalized metal guitar pick, with the crest of Friendship engraved on it. On the other side, it said, in imperfectly stroked Japanese letters: ヤマト、へ親友になりたい –ミミから. His thoughts started to run like an English train, monotonous and repetitive; long and slow:

_'I wish to become close friends,' she said. _


	4. Armistice

**Author's Note: **Thank you for those who took the time to read and review the fourth chapter! I'm really glad you're enjoying it. I would just like to add that Taiora and Takari are implied in this story aside from the main ship, in case that's a concern as to where the characters are going. Anyway, here's chapter four! Happy reading!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Four  
_Armistice_

_16__th__ January 2015_

"Is it okay if I bring Mimi-chan with me later?" asked Sora.

"It's okay, I don't mind," answered Yamato as he took a chopsticks-full of noodles. Yamato did as what Mimi had said the day she returned. For now, things had been going smoothly with Sora. He and Taichi made up the following day of Mimi coming back. He hadn't talked to her afterwards. "Takeru said he and Hikari will be coming, too."

It's been two weeks since Mimi's return. The New Year had already passed and school resumed. The snowfall had become lighter, and so did the tension between Sora, Yamato, and Taichi.

Sora smiled, being reminded of how Yamato and Mimi got closer the last get-together. Whenever she talked to Mimi on the phone, her best friend will always complain at how Yamato doesn't even _teensy-weensy _care for dear 'ol Mimi. With that, she will often encourage Yamato to be friendly with her best friend, to at least leave her a message on chat, but he'd just usually give him the 'I-don't-know-what-we'll-talk-about' excuse. It was nice to see him make an effort.

Not much longer, Taichi joined them, with his tray crowded with food. "I can't believe they ran out of shoyu already," complained Taichi, who got miso instead.

"You can have some of mine if you want," offered Yamato bluntly. Taichi checked over Yamato's soup. "But you already ate the chicken," complained Taichi. "_Sora_, Mimi-chan told me to remind you of today,"

"Don't worry. I didn't forget." Replied Sora as she bit off from her bread. Koushiro then joined their table and sat beside Sora.

"You're not going to eat noodles? Or rice?" asked Yamato, noticing Koushiro's tray.

"No.." replied Koushiro. "They have pork bread, hehe." He replied as he unwraps the bread.

"I know, I've wanted some pork bread for days," agreed Sora as she bit from her pastry.

School days have been less dramatic for Yamato. He and Sora haven't fought since then, and Taichi wasn't moping. It bothered him to bits. _It's too fast to be okay.._ he thought to himself. He found it unnatural. Of course, he'd prefer this eccentric harmonious chatter than arguing with Taichi or Sora. _I'm becoming so paranoid._

_Why is this so hard_, thought Taichi. After an earful from Mimi and Hikari, it pushed him to finally start controlling his feelings and try moving on again from Sora. He admitted to himself that he was the one causing the problems after all. If only he wasn't smitten with Sora (not that he was not trying to remove it out of his system), Yamato would feel at ease. Some days he wished Yamato randomly punches him than to go through all _these feelings_ instead. Taichi let out a sigh and gulped from his bottled water. _How much of the water can I hold before it overflows the brim? _He didn't like the fact that he was starting to think in metaphors.

* * *

"I guess everyone's right, nothing changed much here for three years," noted Mimi as she sipped from her tea. She stared outside the coffee shop, people-watching.

"People still cosplay, do gyaru-stuff, you know, the usual Harajuku people," said Jyou bluntly as he adjusted his glasses.

"In New York, things pass by so quickly,"

"How fast?"

"Let's say, a nine-months-old coffee shop gets demolished, and a new steakhouse replaces it in three months,"

Mimi took another sip. "That's why I'm so keen in trying everything out, wherever I am. I wouldn't want to miss anything." She reasoned, meaning every word of it. She looked at her cup, thinking how Michael and Cat were right now.

"Tell me, Mimi-chan," Her head shot right up to look at him.

"How do people at my age act? In New York, I mean," he asked. Mimi scrunched her eyebrows and looked up, pondering. She glanced back at Jyou, who was staring at the bonsai on their table.

"Well, most college students I've met act freely and recklessly," she answered. "While still being able to juggle their school stuff. One time Michael and I went to Wall Street and bumped on a med intern from Harvard," laughed Mimi. "It's actually a funny story since he was on his way to work and he was drunk in the daylight.." she continued on as Jyou patiently listened. But his head was also somewhere else.

"Mimi-chan, do you think I can get in Harvard med?" he asked out of the blue. He'd been meaning to aim higher, trying to get out his own mediocrity. What else can he achieve, aside from being just another Dr. Kido? She was cut off from her New York tale, and was a bit shaken from the question.

"I really wouldn't know Jyou-kun, I haven't tried," she giggled, taking another sip. Jyou grunted at Mimi's non-seriousness and rolled his eyes. Mimi smirked. "But I believe you can,"

The boy with glasses smiled, tapping on his mug. "I'm going to try then," he said.

What? Wouldn't that mean Jyou will leave Japan? _I just got here for goodness' sake_, Mimi's smile disappeared for a while then tried to grin. "Okay, I'm going to ask Michael!"

"Okay. I'll take you to Sora-chan's school in a bit," he said, looking at his watch. "You guys are going to watch Yamato-kun's band practice, right?" She nodded, feeling like a child. Jyou, her dearest Kido Jyou, was now an adult.

* * *

Mimi had her brow arched in a perfectly curved angle along with a lopsided grin the whole time she watched Yamato play the first three songs. Taichi and Sora were perplexed, not having a clue what Yamato was singing about. It turned out Koushiro knew the song. She swore she could hear him sing a few lines. Hikari knew too, thanks to a recommendation from Takeru – whom was singing out loud along with Yamato the whole time.

Yamato told the rest of the band to take a break. His band members went in the recording room as Yamato went over to Sora.

"Were those new songs?" asked Sora as she handed him a bottle of water. He shook his head and wiped the sweat off of his face. "Those were the songs of a band I discovered from Tachika – Mimi," he answered.

"I didn't think you'd like them, to be honest," laughed Mimi.

"Yeah, you always get angry whenever I play my 'obscure' songs too loud," added Takeru, noting on the times his brother told him how weird his music taste is.

"I thought they were new songs, they sound new and refreshing. Only, I couldn't understand what you were saying," said Sora with a giggle.

"It's really hard, since the band sings the songs in a very intricate British accent," pointed out Koushiro.

"Yeah, I'm just messing up with the lyrics too. I listened to that band for days and it took me seven days to be familiar with some of the lyrics," said Yamato as he opened the bottled water. He looked at Taichi. He felt the tension, but was comforted when the brunet gave him his thumbs-up.

"I'm glad you're trying something new then," complimented Sora as she planted a kiss on his cheek. The blond goofily smiled. "I'll just go to the restroom, okay," said Sora, as she left with Hikari. Yamato looked around, seeing whom to talk to. Taichi and Takeru were both engrossed in watching Koushiro play from his phone. He caught Mimi staring at him.

"Nice English, Yamato-kun," teased Mimi, who was still amused. Yamato turned to Mimi and sat at the empty seat beside her. He stared at her face intently, she was increasingly becoming uneasy. _"With a face from a movie scene, or magazine, you know what I mean,"_ Mimi blushed as he sang, but immediately shook the feeling.

"You're almost there, Yamato-kun," giggled Mimi. Yamato grinned and ran a hand through his hair. "I seriously can't get them right," he said. "It's challenging me, frankly,"

"Being Japanese is a handicap to begin with," said Mimi. "I commend your band though, you guys sounded a lot like them, except for the vocals,"

"Yeah, I need to work on it," said Yamato.

"Why don't you try easier English bands?" Yamato smirked at her suggestion.

"No, there's no such thing as 'easier English bands' for a Japanese musician like me," said Yamato. She laughed along with him. Silence took over when laughter died, and both started to feel uncomfortable.

"Oh yeah," Yamato took out the guitar pick from his pocket and showed it to Mimi. "Thanks," he said. Mimi turned into a deeper shade of red upon seeing it. Facing her was the little message she engraved there.

"Aniki," called out Takeru, leaving Mimi unable to respond. Yamato went over to his little brother.

Takeru looked stern and curious, his arms crossed. "What?" asked Yamato as he sat down beside him. His younger brother faced him and looked at him intently at the eyes.

"Are you flirting with Mimi-chan?" he whispered. Yamato scowled. "Of course not," The other blond squinted his eyes, obviously doubting his motives.

"Why on earth did you even think I am flirting with her?"

"Because.."

"Because..?"

Takeru couldn't point at anything solidifying. To him, it just seemed that way. Maybe he's just reading too much from it. He was a kid with an exceptional imagination after all. "Nothing," Takeru answered.

"You're being weird," pointed out Yamato. "You're always weird, but today you're weirder," he added.

"I'm just checking," replied Takeru. "You two just seemed friendlier to each other. It's an unusual sight,"

"Yeah.. She helped me out with Sora,"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

"None of your business. I'm going to meet up with the band, we'll be playing in a minute or two," Yamato stood up and patted his little brother's head. "Behave yourself," He sped to the recording room, where his band members were hanging out. They were listening to the practice of their recordings, and laughing at Yamato's British _Engrish_.

"You guys can stop now,"

"But Yama-kun," Shinji, his bassist, couldn't resist. The rest of the band just kept giggling and chuckling, mimicking Yamato's singing, 'til the song stopped playing.

"Okay, we're done now, Ishida," Hiroyuki, the drummer, said. He looked through the window which showed the other room. "Say, who's that girl?" he was pointing at Mimi.

"Yeah, who is she? I've never seen her before," piped Shinji.

"She's hella pretty," said Keisuke, the guitarist. The three of them were gazing at Mimi, already calling dibs in their heads.

"That's Tachikawa Mimi. She's my –" wait. Is she an old friend, or a new friend? Is it too assuming of him to say they're friends? _Well, anyway.._

"Anyway. No, you can't date her," warned Yamato. Their eyes shot Yamato with daggers. "And why not?" asked Shinji.

"Because she's a very old friend of mine," he said, cautiously. He didn't really know what to call Mimi other than that. "How come you've never gone out with her?" asked Keisuke. "I mean, look at her. She's so pretty,"

_Oh I pretty hell know she is_, thought Yamato, having already admitted that to himself since he knew her. Discomforted, he told them to bug off. "Look at her all you want but you can't make any moves on her. Sora will kill you guys,"

They grunted. All of them went out of the room and headed their way back to the studio. Yamato was still unsure. Why wouldn't he allow any of them to make a move on her?_ Because they're bad boyfriends, _reasoned Yamato. _Yeah, that could be it._ He was just protecting Mimi. And on their way, before he picked up his guitar, he realized that if there was anything Mimi was to him before being his friend, she was _merely_ an acquaintance and a childhood crush.

* * *

"How's Taichi so far?" Sora asked, after leaving the cubicle to re-apply her lip balm. "I think he and Yamato had already made up but.. I'm not sure if he's really okay,"

Hikari felt really uncomfortable. Sora has been a sister to her the whole time. She knew she didn't have to choose a side, but she didn't like being treated as some sort of their intelligence officer. Taichi was always emotionally pent-up. It's always been told that he and Mimi were similar—both sociable, always willing to help – but the difference was that Taichi wasn't good at opening up about his personal feelings. Prying is futile; she tried countless of times. How the hell could she know what her brother's thinking about? "Onii-chan's fine, Sora-chan," she assured. The redhead didn't seem convinced.

"I'm just so worried," said Sora. "He and Yamato are okay now, but it seems as if he started avoiding me, too,"

"I really don't know," it was so hard to lie to Sora. But she needed to perfect this one. "I think he's really okay now though. He and Yamato hang out at our place during the weekend," Sora bit her lip.

"Don't worry about onii-chan, Sora-chan. Just focus on your relationship with Yamato-kun," she said with a smile. Saying those words felt odd, insincere. The older girl finally gave in, nodded.

"I'll believe you then," she said. "I hope you will still tell me if something goes wrong," she said. "Taichi may seem like he's really a carefree guy, but he's not as open as he is when it comes to his feelings,"

_I agree,_ Hikari thought. Without anymore of Taichi, they went back to the studio, the band already in their places for another round of songs.

After a couple of mispronounced lyrics from replaying the songs earlier, The Teenage Wolves went back to play their original stuff. Mimi's insides were probably squealing louder than Sora's when Yamato sang his song for his girlfriend. This was the first time Mimi heard Yamato sing live, and in Japanese. Takeru told her that band practices had never gone by without Yamato singing Sora's song, "Tobira". Maybe she could get Yamato to sing with her some Kyary Pamyu Pamyu songs, she wondered.

Mimi noticed that the couple maintained eye-contact the whole time. She looked over Sora's blank expression, yet with a gleaming, vibrant face.

_Lucky Sora_, she thought. Oh, how Mimi wished she had a lover like that. She was yet to meet the person who'd be as willing and loving, despite her laundry list of almost lovers and ex-boyfriends. Her smile fell.

"Takeru-kun, Kari-chan," called out Mimi. Band practice just ended, and Yamato had already started packing while the rest waited. It turned out Sora and Yamato are going to have a date. Mimi didn't feel like being the annoying third wheeler with them, and wondered if she could be so with Takeru and Hikari instead – despite not being a couple, technically. _But still, it's obvious they like each other_, reasoned Mimi.

The pair approached Mimi, curious.

"Let's get takoyaki or something, what do you say?" offered Mimi. Taichi crept behind her and laughed his heart out.

"You sound like you're still talking to kindergarteners," he said.

"Oh, we don't mind, onii-chan, we like free stuff," giggled Hikari.

"Well I did get stuck with it. Kari-chan and Takeru-kun will always be eight-years old to me!" exclaimed Mimi. "Say, you should come along with us, Kou-kun, Tai-kun!" she offered, remembering Taichi's facial expression from earlier. Also, she hadn't spent any time with him yet since her return.

"Okay," agreed Koushiro. "I'm done with homework anyway,"

"What do you guys plan to do?" a pumped up Taichi asked. They all looked at each other, searching for answers.

"Well, what do we do, Mi-chan?" asked Takeru.

"I don't really know, I actually just wanted to go out, hehe," answered Mimi. She spent her first few weeks back in Japan going out and taking Jyou. Sora, Takeru, and Hikari to familiar places that excited her, though her friends already find them mundane. Takeru and Hikari took her to Tokyo Disneyland last Saturday, and she did miss the eccentric Mickey Mouse merchandise and goodies they sold here compared to the L.A. and Florida counterparts.

"We're going to leave now, Mimi-chan," said Sora. She had her arm linked on to Yamato's. Yamato looked at them. "Where are you guys going?" he asked.

"Oh, Mimi-chan wants to go out," answered Takeru. "We're trying to figure out where," Yamato noticed Taichi was coming with them too.

"But it's five already," said Sora. "and you've already went out earlier, Mi-chan,"

"I know Sora-chan, but there's just so much to see! I still haven't felt that homey Japanese feel! I need to get used to it!" exclaimed Mimi. "Back in New York, Michael, Cat, and I will be going around town trying new things until we frequented those places! I've become so familiar with the Big Apple,"

"Then let's go somewhere we all haven't gone to before," suggested Taichi. _Though.. I'm not sure there's such a place.._

She wanted to join them. But this was the first time she and Yamato are going to have a date this year. She felt left out nonetheless. She didn't know that Yamato felt the same. "I hope you all enjoy then! Tell me all about it, Mi-chan!" she and Yamato waved goodbye at them and left.

Mimi turned to the rest. "So... where to?"

* * *

Yamato and Sora hadn't uttered a single word since they ordered their food in a quaint restaurant that served a variety of pasta. Sora was watching Yamato as he gobbled up, obviously tired and hungry from earlier. _We're okay now, nothing could screw that up,_ thought Sora.

"Yamato-kun," He didn't look up to her and continued eating. This annoyed her a bit. "What do you want to do next?"

"I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"I don't know either, "

"Hmm… Well I thought of something, but I don't think we can do it now,"

"Oh, what is it?"

"Ice skating?"

"I don't know how to."

"I'll teach you."

"Okay."

Another silence. _What is this,_ thought Sora. Yamato had always been like this, being misunderstood by a lot, except her. Sometimes hot and mostly cold, she accepted that fact when she became his girlfriend. But now that didn't seem to be the case.

She remembered two weeks ago Yamato came by her house on a snowy Sunday, with a written apology and an acoustic guitar on hand, ready for a song. With tears on her face she welcomed him in her arms, he too was crying – they planted kisses on each other and spent the rest of that Sunday unclothed, caressing each other on her bed. On that day, he made her feel that he loved her, the same way he did three years ago. By the end of the day it felt like most of the times they kissed and made up; out with the guilt and in with the anxiety.

"Sora," called out Yamato. "Are you okay?"

She stared into his deep blue eyes. No matter how much of a jerk he could seem to be or how much her insecurities tell her he didn't love her same, or how she always seems to be the one giving everything, she would keep on loving him as long as her heart could.

"Sora?"

Oh, how she wanted to spit those words on his face. "Ahh," she was dazing off again. "I'm sorry." _Ahh.. I should take some rest and stop worrying about this.. _The last thing she wanted to happen today was a fight.

She was silent the whole time, and this worried Yamato. _What could she be thinking?_ He thought. He wondered if he did anything wrong. Today seemed to be a good day, they were okay at school, Sora's been cheerful with everyone, but here was his lover seemingly out of it. _Maybe she feels ill or something.._

"Can you take me home now?"

Disappointment was obvious in his face. But he didn't want to pry. "Okay." He took the bill, paid it, and grabbed Sora's hand. She squeezed his hand back.

The whole trip from there to her house was silent. But they didn't need the words. They were both anticipating, dreading the seemingly inevitable ever since the rough patch – but neither wanted to do it. Maybe, just maybe if they keep staying, keep on trying, things would eventually be okay. They thought about what could possibly push them to end it; they didn't know. And so, they'd stay together while fearing it.

She squeezed his hand. He squeezes back. They needed more time.

Less than an hour, they were already at the doorstep. Sora, dressed with a thick red coat and a white scarf, looked to her shoes. "Thank you for today," she whispered.

Yamato nodded. She turned her back from him. "Wait."

"What?"

"Is there something wrong?" _No, let me correct that:_ "Did I do something wrong?"

She felt guilty. "No, you didn't, Yamato-kun."

Unconvinced, he was. "You can tell me anything, okay?"

She can't. "Okay."

Still unconvinced. "You know I love you, right?"

God, if only she could make herself believe on that right now. "I do. I love you. I'll see you on Monday, Yamato-kun," She does love him. _At least that was still true,_ she thought.

"See you," Yamato let her hand go as she entered the house. He stayed out of her porch for a few minutes, thinking. He walked on his way back to the station, rode a train to Palette Town. There was definitely something wrong. When they made up two weeks ago, he asked her to have minimal contact with Taichi. She agreed, and she looked as determined as he was to keep them from falling apart – but maybe she was just pretending, doing it to appease to his selfishness. _And what if she is?_ thought Yamato. The tug of war between his polarizing feelings remained.

It was eight in the evening and snow started to fall. His black coat, his hair already powdered since he got off the train. Aimless on a Friday night, he thought he could distract himself for a while with some video games at Tokyo Leisureland. After all, he wouldn't be able to _not_ think about Sora in his sleep later.

"Yamato-kun?" came a familiar voice.

He looked up, surprised, torn if he was or was not glad to see this person at this delicate time.

"Tachikawa,"

* * *

Author's Note: Truth to be told I don't know when I'd update next, I'm kind of stuck as I go along the fifth chapter, but I hope things go well. Comments, suggestions, criticism, random messages (anything really, aside from spam and pairing-hate comments) are welcomed!


	5. Thoughts and Feelings

**Author's Note:** Thanks to everyone who took the time to read the chapter before. Here's chapter five! As for my guest reviewer, I use "aniki" and "onii-chan" just because it feels natural of Takeru and Hikari to say it when they address their siblings. It feels much more intimate. Hehe. I hope you keep reading though Also, a mention to DigiYo, who's been reviewing my work frequently. It's such a pleasure to hear that there are readers like you who are enjoying! :-) Anyway, onto the fifth chapter!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Five  
_Thoughts and Feelings_

"_How are you?"_

"_Hi. I'm okay. :-) how about you?"_

"_I'm good too.. You guys still together?"_

"_Yeah, we are. We're having karaoke at Leisureland. Get this, Kou-kun actually sang two songs. Hehehe."_

"_Really now? He doesn't even sing a single song back then!"_

"_I know. Mi-chan forced him. Haha."_

Not knowing what else to reply, Sora placed her phone on her bedside and smiled in satisfaction upon knowing Taichi wasn't ignoring her. She'd been lying on her bed since Yamato took her home, spacing out, trying to sort out inklings and random tugs on her heart.

She still couldn't figure out how things had gotten so complicated among the three of them. They were such good friends, especially after their adventure at the Digiworld, and here's her dear Yamato, asking her to just give up her very first and best friend.

_He's important to me, _thought Sora. _And I'm pretty sure he's important to Yamato, too. _Sure, Mimi is her right hand, her first go-to person, but Taichi was like family to her. Since they were children she always admired his head-on attitude, his optimistic spirit, despite his stubbornness and lack of sensitivity.

She flipped on her back, thinking how Yamato had become doubtful of her feelings for him. He'd always use that against her, that she liked Taichi – that they have a very exceptional relationship, in contrast to the conventional romance they have. She wouldn't deny, she did like Taichi, and she did have romantic feelings for him back then. _He just didn't like me back. _She couldn't just force herself on someone who wasn't willing to feel the same way. So, she and Yamato happened.

_Huh.. right.._ she couldn't blame him feeling that way. Sora hugged her pillow tighter. Should she have not baked those cookies for Yamato that day? Should she have just kept pining for Taichi's affection? What was the _right_ thing to do? Is there even such a thing?

_What else could I have done? I am just a girl, too, _she told herself, not liking where her thoughts had been going. She wondered if she really did choose Yamato to distract herself from an old flame, if she chose him in vain. _But that doesn't make me love him any less_, she thought. Because, right now, not even her then-feelings for Taichi can outmatch her feelings for Yamato.

She reached over the bedside upon hearing her phone beep; another message from Taichi. She felt a pang of betrayal when she found out that her boyfriend had joined them.

* * *

"Why is Sora not with you?" asked Taichi as he drank from his bottle of cola.

"She fell ill," replied Yamato. It was one of those nights again, when they use Taichi's fake ID (courtesy of Jyou, which he didn't approve of initially) and grab some drinks and waste away with songs. He watched Mimi and Takeru sing in a duet. Based from his jukebox-like memory of songs, Takeru and Mimi's song came from an English musical. Koushiro was checking out the songs list for the karaoke, obviously drunk, while Hikari swayed along with the song as she munched chips.

"Oh, that's too bad," replied Taichi. No more words had followed for a few moments, until Taichi broke in the silence.

"Yamato-kun,"

And the other was just as nervous. "Taichi-kun,"

Taichi breathed, trying to gathering the rest of his being and courage. They had fought over so many things since they were children, mostly for the non-sensible reasons, but to him, Sora was worth fight.

"I still like Sora," it seemed as if he didn't breathe when he said it. Yamato, unsurprised, turned to look at him, fists clenched.

"I know you do,"

"I know that you know," replied Taichi. "I won't be sorry that I feel that way,"

Yamato sighed, not knowing if he was asking for a fight. He rubbed his temples. "I know you're not sorry,"

_Oh, I'm definitely not sorry. _Taichi laughed, making the Yamato confused. "Why are you laughing?"

"I don't know, I'm really amused,"

"I am not,"

After a few chuckles, Taichi breathed deeply to face Yamato again. "We're still friends, right?"

"Depends," replied Yamato. "I'm honestly not sure where this conversation is going to at the moment," he continued, afraid that this might end up with a classic Taichi-and-Yamato fist fight._What had Taichi drank now.._

Taichi shook his head and laughed, turned to watch Koushiro trying to grab the microphone from Mimi.

"Yamato-kun, as much as I am deeply in love with Sora, my best friend, your girlfriend, I won't do anything to ruin Sora's happiness. Your happiness." He said, smiling.

Yamato ran his hand through his hair, leaning back at the sofa. _God._ He knew that. He knew that Taichi wouldn't betray him. He always knew. He knew it wasn't Taichi hurting him that he was afraid of.

"I am sorry for one thing, though," continued Taichi. Yamato looked to his side. "I'm sorry I wasn't very honest back then."

"Don't apologize for that anymore," chuckled Yamato, having already heard Taichi say sorry to him about it several times. "You were never good with showing your feelings," _Huh. That feels so weird saying that._

"Yeah, I did. I just thought that even if I did turn to you and tell you the truth, nothing will change," answered Taichi. "Sora will still choose you."

Yamato fell silent. He placed a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "I think you'd have the equal chance as I did if you were honest to her. And if she likes you more, I would gladly step back as you've done for me," he said.

"Don't be stupid, Yamato," laughed Taichi. "Even if I learned your feelings for her, I wouldn't step back. I'd fight as long as she's not making a choice yet," he said, taking another gulp from his cola. His gaze was now at Takeru and Hikari, whose shoulders were touching each other's. He ought to give his little sister a lecture.

"I'm sad it's not me, but I'm glad that it's you." Continued Taichi, now putting an arm around Yamato. "I know this feels so gay, but I think I need to do this," added Taichi, obviously avoiding eye contact with him. Yamato felt awkward for a moment, then broke into laughter.

"Okay you can stop sharing your feelings with me now," said Yamato, removing Taichi's arm around him. "I get it, we're good. We're cool now aren't we?"

"I know we are but I needed a reassurance," replied Taichi, scratching his head. "I don't want us to grow distant from each other,"

Yamato smiled but then scowled. "Seriously stop it now, you're really creeping me out,"

Not for long Taichi took it as an opportunity to annoy Yamato, just like the usual. Maliciously ginning, he threw his arms around the other. "But Yama-_kuuuuun_.."

Koushiro noticed the growing noise from the other corner of the karaoke room. Without words he tapped Mimi and Hikari by their shoulders, pointing towards the two.

"Well, this is a sight," said Hikari.

"This feels so wrong," said Takeru, watching Taichi keep his hold around Yamato as the other tried to get out of his grip.

"Nah, this just feels about right," said Koushiro, sensing the return of the two's normalcy. He was finally relieved. "Now what do I sing next…"

Mimi was feeling enthusiastic and pumped up again. "This is wonderful! Taichi-kun and Yamato-kun, together again!"

The two didn't even notice the room had gone silent until Mimi started singing Candy Candy. Afterwards Yamato and Taichi finally joined in the singing. It wasn't until ten in the evening when they decided to go home. They're about to bid each other goodbye at the train station. Takeru, Taichi, and Hikari going to the other side of town, while Yamato, Koushiro, and Mimi on the current side.

"Koushiro-kun," whispered Mimi, watching Yamato still talking to Taichi.

"What is it?" asked Koushiro, fearing he was about to hear another request from her. He and Mimi were always close, and he was one of the people she talked to often during her stay in America.

"Would you mind if I have time alone with Yamato?" Mimi saw the look on his face, he was definitely suspicious and she'd owe him an explanation. "I just need to ask him something,"

Still uncertain, Koushiro nodded. Whatever Mimi was up to, though, he'd ask in the morning. "Hey guys, I'm going to go ahead okay," he said out loud, already walking away.

"Huh? Aren't you going to walk with us?" Yamato shouted back. The redhead glanced at Mimi, giving him a signal to go. _Eh.. this feels weird.. _he thought.

"I need to go somewhere else.. see you on Monday!"

After another round of goodbyes Taichi, Hikari, and Takeru went inside the station, disappearing from their sight.

Yamato and Mimi stared at each other for a while, trying to read each other. His feelings hadn't changed, he didn't really want to deal with her right now. Having to deal with Taichi tonight was already enough.

"Let's go home," he started walking. Mimi followed, trying to catch up with his pace. He didn't know how to feel, being alone with Mimi at this hour. Here he was, walking with a crush, and on his right was the very picturesque Rainbow Bridge, illuminating the coast. It felt too romantic; it felt like something he and Sora should have been doing earlier. The sooner he'd get her home, the better.

"Yamato-kun,"

"Hmm?"

"Are you okay?"

"I am. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know.." she was trying to choose her words carefully. "You don't seem okay."

"I am, don't worry."

He was lying, alright. And she wasn't going to take it. She leaned in to see his face. "Yamato-kuuun.."

"Can you just stop it?" he snapped, blushing in red; annoyed at how cute she was, annoyed at how intrusive she was. She frowned, and walked behind him instead. That definitely wasn't the reaction she hoped for. Maybe she misjudged their relationship. Maybe they're not that close yet, where she can ask him how he is, and probably he'd ask her how she is, then maybe they'd talk it over or something..

"Well you're not being friendly,"

He breathed a sigh. _Nope,_ he definitely doesn't want to deal with this right now. "You're being too annoying. Tachikawa," He turned around to face her. She was staring at her feet. He sensed she was about to cry.

"I'm just trying to help," she answered. Yamato groaned, slapping a hand on his forehead.

"I didn't ask," Why would she be interested in his petty problems anyway?

"You idiot, you don't have to! We're friends, aren't we?"

He froze, silent. Friends. _Right._ They're friends now, right? Wasn't that what he ought they were now?

"Seriously, you're unbelievable, Ishida. Why are you always mean to me?" she croaked, looking away. "I just wanted to be your friend," she continued, more tears falling as she remembered her gift to him. If there was one thing about Mimi that attracted (and repelled) him, it was her brutal honesty and sincerity. He never liked people making her cry, even when they were children. It was like kicking a puppy. He remembered getting angry at Taichi one time, when she made graves for their lost Digimon friends.

It was true that most of the time since they knew each other, he hadn't treated her well, until recently. He always seemed to scoff her. It was a well-known fact among the group.

No longer was she bawling like an infant, but she was obviously hurt. Feeling guilty, he ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He took her hand, his other hand rubbing her head. He noticed how smooth and soft her hand was, obviously naïve of tedious work. He gripped it to warm her cold palm.

"Don't cry, Tachikawa. You are my friend. I'm sorry. I just wasn't in the mood," he said, before releasing her hand. He leaned on to the fence, staring at the coast. She copied him. Feeling the gravity of her stare, his azure eyes met her hazel ones. He remembered about that "what-if" again.

"I'm not supposed to be here with you," he laughed.

"What's that even supposed to mean," she murmured, not liking what she was hearing.

"Don't you think this is too romantic? You, me, this scenery, this tension,"

She scrunched her brows, not having a clue what he was talking about. She certainly couldn't feel anything romantic about walking together. She and Michael (and several other guy friends) walked alone together lots of times back in America. _Is he hitting on me?!_ She started to mentally panic, hoping he wasn't misreading her.

"What are you talking about?"

"If you're Sora right now, this would have been a perfect day,"

Mimi sighed, relieved. He was obviously frustrated about something. Again. "I don't know what you're talking about, Yamato-kun. But you're definitely not okay."

"I think you've figured that out hours ago,"

"Heh. I did. So what's wrong?"

"I don't know what's wrong anymore."

"What the hell is with that answer, Ishida,"

"I don't know what's wrong anymore. It just feels that she isn't happy with me,"

"And you're getting into this conclusion because..?"

"A _gut_ feeling."

Mimi bit her tongue to restrain from laughing. She didn't want to offend him in any way.

"I don't know how else I could help you on something from a gut feeling, Yamato-kun."

"I know you can't, dummy," he grunted. "I just needed to talk to someone,"

Her strawberry-head turned to the scenery. _Oh. _It's romantic, alright. "How are you and Taichi?"

"We're okay now,"

"For real?"

"For real."

"That's good. You should stop worrying, you know,"

"I wish. It turns out it wasn't Taichi's feelings I was worried about,"

"It's impossible for Taichi-kun to hurt you,"

"But Sora can,"

She glanced at him. "You gave her that right the moment you became lovers," she crossed her arms over the fence, watching the bridge turn from red-orange to blue-green.

"I feel this way because even now, I'm not sure of her feelings for me,"

_Well that took you a long time to realize_, she thought. "I think that was the problem all along," she said bluntly.

He turned to look at her. The Mimi right now was definitely different from the one he knew. "You seem to be very good at the matters of the heart, Tachikawa,"

She giggled. "Oh, I had my fair share of pain of getting my heart broken because of romance. Definitely one of the reasons I came back," Her statement got him curious. Nobody told him she had a boyfriend or a love interest back in America – not Takeru, or Sora. Series of questions started to formulate in his head.

"Mind telling me about it?" he asked, trying to sound cool. "I feel too selfish for always being the topic of our conversation,"

"I think I've had enough of the spotlight," she chuckled. "_Nah,_ I'm just joking, I love the spotlight!" And this was probably the first time Yamato had asked her something personal.

He laughed. _Same old, same old._ "Of course you do."

"So what do you what to know?"

"Well I never knew you had a boyfriend,"

The pink-haired girl giggled, now liking where this was going. Now, if only he'd agree to chat with her over a cup of coffee or tea at this hour.

"No one did, Yamato-kun."

* * *

**Author's Note: **I hope you'll all keep reading. Hehe. I have to give out a warning to everyone since.. hehehe. Allons-y chapter six, soon!


	6. Ode to Innocence

**Author's Note: **Here's what I have promised, chapter six.

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Six  
_Ode to Innocence_

Taichi watched the two become intimate. Hikari had never told him anything about going out with Takeru, and Taichi didn't really want to know anything about it either, but it's been everyone's forecast that they'd start dating sooner or later. Mimi had warned him beforehand, they'd definitely get together and told him that he should give his _blessing _to them in advance. Apparently, it didn't take him that long to realize they were right.

On front of him he could see Takeru and Hikari's own little world unfold – and he wasn't welcomed. He felt his stomach flip when his little sister grabbed the arm of the golden-haired boy and leaned on it. Takeru then put an arm around her shoulder. He wondered if they're already going out. He was sure Hikari would tell him, or at least Yamato would have mentioned it. He felt more awkward as they started to stare at each other, with their faces just a few inches away.

_Don't they know I'm just behind them?_ He thought, annoyed. Since when did his little sister start to get so interested with boys? And why was she behaving so peculiarly, out of character, _unHikari-like_? And Takeru, who used to be much smaller than his sister – why was he being so macho all of the sudden?

He took out his phone to distract himself. He sighed upon seeing his unread messages. _Is the Lord testing me? _he thought.

"_Yamato didn't tell me he was going with you guys."  
_"_I got sick so we kind of ended our date early. I didn't know he was going to meet everyone."  
_"_I'm kind of scared that we're not really okay."_

He didn't know what to reply, since he received the messages more than three hours ago. '_We're not really okay', she says.. who's 'we'? _He returned his phone inside his coat. He already made up his mind. Whatever that was happening to Sora and Yamato, he'd stay out of it for good.

* * *

It's past ten in the evening, and he took Mimi to Town Ongaku Club, the music bar he told her about, with very much of her insistence. He didn't know who were playing, but they were covering a lot of YUI's songs.

Mimi had forgotten to continue her tale, obviously too keen about the place, asking random strangers beside them. Town Ongaku Club is a small underground music bar in an alley of Shinjuku. The place was dimly-lit in orange, except for the small stage area for the performers. The walls were decorated with random posters. Mimi remembered how bars looked like in New York, and she started comparing the cleanliness. This one was definitely cleaner.

_At least she liked it_, thought Yamato. Hopefully it won't be too obvious they're under-aged. He wasn't worried about himself though. Mimi, without a doubt, looks sixteen and she might just give that away. _Maybe I should introduce her to Manager Makoto.._

"This is amazing, Yamato-kun!" exclaimed Mimi. "I haven't heard any indie Japanese music for a long time,"

"Yeah.." he replied, worrying people might notice she's a newbie. He ordered rice wine for the two of them.

"Yamato-kun, do you know what band is playing right now?" she asked, watching the performers.

"I don't, I think they're new here," he replied, watching her instead. She was enjoying herself, and it was such a sight to see. "Tachikawa,"

"Hmm.. Yamato-kun?" her attention still divided.

"You were saying something earlier,"

"What? What was it?"

He rolled his eyes, she had forgotten. "Ex-boyfriend."

She turned to him, wide-eyed. "Oh, yeah! Right,"

"So..?"

"So.."

He watched her find her words. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," he said, trying to make her at ease.

"No! It's okay, hehe. Ahh. I didn't tell anyone because I know a lot of you will disagree," she replied.

"Well that's interesting. Shouldn't Sora be the one to know these things?"

"Yeah, but.. I think if she finds out whom I have been – was – dating, she'd be worried as hell, you know.." she said.

"Who was he anyway?" Mimi took her phone from her purse, gave it to him. He saw a picture of a pale and skinny guy with platinum blonde hair and brown eyes – disgusted that his eyes were so typically Asian – and beside him was a younger Mimi. The Mimi that had chestnut hair, the Mimi he knew. _What could she have seen in this guy?_ He asked himself, already judging his very distracting tattoo of a little sailor girl. He returned her phone to her palm. Whether it was out of his logic or his unaccounted jealousy, one thing was for sure – he didn't like him.

"Yoshio. He's Japanese and he's a musician," she said, avoiding his gaze.

Yamato stared at her; unsurprised, yet confused why Sora would disagree of Mimi dating a musician. He was one, after all. The bigger issue for him was that he couldn't see how she ever got attracted to him. "So what's wrong with dating a musician?"

Apparently she wasn't done yet. "He was a druggie,"

He blinked several times, checking his senses, did he hear her right? He shook his head and glared at her.

"That's such a bad joke, Tachikawa," he snapped, checking her face for any hint of playfulness. They were gazing each other, eye-to-eye. And in her eyes he saw his defeat; he hated it that she was so easy to read.

The waitress came over to serve their wine.

Mimi saw how abruptly he took his glass and drank it. He wasn't facing her anymore, but he remained expressionless. She started to play with her hair out of nervousness. "Oh, see, now you know why I didn't go around telling everyone. I would have wanted to boast how passionately in love I was with him, if I could,"

She glanced at him, waiting for a reply. When Yamato remained mute, she cleared her throat to continue. "We started dating when I was fourteen. I broke up with him more than a year ago," Still, he uttered not a single word, his eyes focused on the stage. She looked at the black-cladded band, then back at him.

She felt as if she was shrinking. Her back slouched, head bowing. She played with her wine. "I tried some of it, too," _why are you not saying anything, Yamato? _Was he judging her already?

"Though it wasn't habitual like he did, I still had them occasionally.. and there were other things," she added. She was bowing so low, her hair covered her face. "_That_ and _other things_. We got caught, eventually. Can you imagine that, getting caught in a shady storage room downtown..? He was four years older, so.." she didn't continue further, realizing he was already out of words.

He felt like she was firing bullets through his head mercilessly. He took another gulp from his wine. Mimi was done telling her story, and she already had finished her drink, too.

The band started to play. The drums, as if it followed the rhythm of his heartbeat. He didn't know how else his day could get any more complex than it already was, especially after having to deal with Sora and Taichi earlier.

He turned his head to face her upon hearing her sob. She probably reckons he's disgusted at her. _I just don't know what to say.. _Heck, he didn't even know what to feel; much more can't make himself believe it. He didn't even deserve to hear this from her. Not something as deep as this one. And maybe if he had a choice, he wouldn't have agreed to hear her out in the first place. It was as if a part of him had corrupted. He felt his heart twist.

"I feel so dirty, Yamato," she murmured, in between her tears. He reached out his hand to hold hers across the table. She looked up at him, surprised at his gesture. Her lips curved upward.

_God, she had already gotten used to it, _and it was so painful that he wanted to wipe off that perfectly plastered fake smile on her face. And the next thing that he did was something he didn't know why, only, he followed his impulse to stand up from his seat, take her with him, out of the bar. Without wasting any more time, he embraced her, and she welcomed it without hesitation. She cried even more.

The snowfall was heavier, but he couldn't feel any of the cold. The night in the city was very much alive and loud. He breathed deeply, wishing he could have said something more comforting.

"Were you that lonely, Mimi?"

* * *

"I think your brother is watching us, Kari-chan," Takeru was very much aware of Taichi's prying and everyone trying to pair him up with Hikari. He and Hikari would go along with their persistence. _But life's not like in the movies, _he thought, thinking all of those stereotypes and clichés he found in Western romantic comedies and shoujo manga characters. But that didn't mean he wasn't allowed to hope.

"I know he is," she replied, pressing her head further on his shoulder. She liked teasing her brother. She liked making Takeru follow her frolicking even more.

"He probably thinks we're an item or something,"

The brunette snorted. "Heh. Like that will happen,"

"Oh Kari-chan.. You think I'm so in to you.." he teased, masking the hurt he felt. Sometimes, he just couldn't understand her. His big brother Yamato said she was doing the push-and-pull, and a lot of girls like playing that game. Even the girls he knew agreed onto that. But Hikari wasn't as cautious as Sora or as clever as Mimi for Hikari to tiptoe her way around him. She certainly won't even bother.

She rolled her eyes. She didn't like it when Takeru becomes sarcastic all of the sudden. Having to hear the older teens among their group made her aware of the mechanics of modern love – **and** real love, as Sora says.

She likes Takeru, yes, but as for the part whether she wants to become his lover, was completely 50-50. Besides, despite their already-years-long hobby of riding along with everyone's teasing, she didn't like the pressure. She couldn't really tell if it was real or just for show to him.

Takeru breathed, anticipating to say something – "Anyway, aren't you excited Mizuhara Kiko's going to star in a live-action movie soon? She's really such an ideal," Hikari just smiled. _And this is one of my 'why not's', _she thought. Takeru always has an 'ideal' for everything; she wasn't sure if he'd really accept her as a whole. _Ahh.. I shouldn't rush about these things though,_ she thought, trying to cloud her mind with something else.

After a few stations, they got off and exited the gate. Hikari and Taichi bid goodbye to Takeru, who lived at the other end of the district.

The two Yagamis walked on their way home, as it was just a few blocks away.

"Hikari," called out Taichi, who was slowly pressing buttons on his phone.

"Yes, onii-chan?"

"Are you and Takeru a couple now?"

"No, onii-chan."

"'_No, onii-chan'_ my face, you two were so.. I've never even experienced that sort of skinship before!" he exclaimed, glaring at the girl. "You two are an item and I'm going to tell dad," He put his phone back in his coat.

The little sister giggled. _Oh, how I wish you were right._

* * *

It wasn't until when Yamato reached his bed that he got to check his phone. Several messages from Sora, each one from Taichi, Mimi, and Koushiro.

Apparently Sora had found out that he had joined the group after their date. He sensed anger from her messages, but didn't bother to reply anymore, not wanting to intensify the night further. It was already 11 anyway. Koushiro asked him what's going on between him and Mimi. _Ahh. I'll just reply tomorrow,_ he thought. Mimi had thanked him for staying with her earlier and taking her home.

Yamato sighed, remembering the revelation earlier. Long gone was the Mimi that cuddled Palmon on her lap and spoiled her with things insider her little brown bag. She had grown up, just as he did. He always believed that no matter how much she would change the color of her hair or her style, she would remain the pink-cladded girl with a cowboy hat. _I guess it's inevitable._

_Mimi._ Tachikawa Mimi, the one who carried Purity, _their_ Mimi,_ his_ Mimi, how could have she gotten into such a thing? Sure, he and Taichi had their own experiments with the _bad_ stuff, and his first shag wasn't Sora either, _but hey_, he's Ishida Yamato.

_Tachikawa, you idiot._ The Mimi he knew would have never even dared to cross that line – _hell_ – she wouldn't even dare to try. It couldn't be. They were never close back then, but he knew her too well. Who was this _son-of-a-bitch _Yoshio guy anyway, and how dare he? How did she meet him, and what did she see in him? How could he even.. _how fucking dare he?_ His mind started to imagine sorts of trickery that Yoshio guy did.

Was he angry at her? Yes, angry that she wasn't careful, as if the classic Mimi Tachikawa was pulling off a Lolita-esque move that attracts dirty old men with a single bat of her eyelashes. Of course, he knew it wasn't really her fault. But he would have wanted to tell those words, that this is what she gets for not being able to protect herself. Now knowing that fact, he reckoned she probably only went back here in Japan _to find_ her 'purity' again, with the evident self-deprecation she showed earlier. But maybe it was his none of his business – everyone goes through their own stupid shit after all, and even the seemingly perfect and carefree Mimi Tachikawa has her own shit to get together.

_But what would a fourteen-year-old Mimi know better?_ Her parents, her friends in America, that Michael or Cat, did anyone know, at all? Wasn't this Sora's job, or Jyou's? Even Taichi could do something about it. They could have stopped her. But Yamato, unbeknownst, had already taken the blame for not being there for her.

_God, why does today have to be like this.. _All Yamato knew was that he'll be staying up all night, thinking how things could have gone better, if he was a better friend to her before. _I would have been there for her._

And he was ready to face the sleepless night, until he reads the last message in his phone. It was from Taichi:

"_Hey. What do you think of me asking Mimi out?"_


	7. Weekend

**Author's Note: **I have to apologize for any confusion whether Mimi's hair is pink or brown. All throughout the story she remains a brunette except for chapter five, in which I _erroneously_ have written that she was pink-haired. Just have to clear up that she remains a brunette in the rest of the story. Hehe. I hope you all bear with my future errors. Anyway, here's chapter seven!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Seven  
_Weekend_

_**Izumi, K.**_  
8:05 a.m.

Izumi Koushiro woke up thanks to the sound of his phone alert. Yesterday was such a rough night for him, spending all the energy getting drunk, being sober at midnight.. it was unusual of him to even pick up a microphone. But today, he would spend the whole day alone, locked up in his room with his trusty laptop – just as he wanted. Mimi and Yamato had messaged him.

"_I'm sorry I had to shoo you away last night. Yama was :("_

"_Sorry for the late reply, already slept in right when I got home. It's weird to say, but Mimi and I are friends now.. hehe." _

Koushiro scratched his head, still in between sleep and wakefulness. _Oh_, right, he remembered leaving Yamato and Mimi alone. Yeah, he still hasn't figured out how the two managed to become buddies. Surprisingly he and Yamato had become really close friends, having shared personal matters, much of his family life and Yamato's teen angst. He and Mimi, however, had been close friends since their childhood. As far as history goes, Yamato having fancied Mimi was a fat. The boys found out all of them had liked Mimi during a game of truth or dare when they slept over at Taichi's in their middle school days. But if there was anything that shocked him that day, the fact that Yamato was into her meant serious business.

_Good thing he has Sora now though,_ thought Koushiro.

"_That's good, Yamato. But since when did you two become friends? Hehe."_

"_I don't know either. We just sort of got close now since she returned. I sort of told her about the stuff happening between me and Sora.. you know." _

"_Doesn't Sora feel weird about it?"_

"_Why would she?"_

"_Well.. you did like Mimi. :|"_

"_Yeah. I did. And Sora doesn't know that. It's best she doesn't anyway, it's all in the past. :)"_

Shortly he found out from him that the couple is still suffering from their rough patch. Yamato eventually asked him to check up on Sora. He did as he was told. He also found out that Yamato and Mimi went somewhere else after the karaoke. He became more suspicious, and thought he should confirm Mimi's feelings.

"_Oh. It's good you two are friends now! You two always sort of had that unexplainable tension. :o"_

"_Yeah, we are. It's weird isn't it? What tension are you talkin' about!"_

"_You two always are awkward? Hmm. I always thought you liked him. Don't worry, I won't tell Sora. :p"_

"_No, Kou. How could you even say such treachery!"_

"I'm just teasing, Mi."

"Huhu. Well, I don't even want to think about the possibility. And if I did, I would have asked Yama-kun out myself, even before Sora-chan makes her move. Hahahaha! Don't tell anyone I said that. _"

He snickered. _"Hahaha. It'll be weird if you did like him though. Don't worry, I won't."_

Koushiro sighed, relieved. Because if she did, he would have already lost to Yamato.

* * *

_**Takaishi, T.**_  
9:15 a.m.

"And where are you going, Take-chan?"

"To Kari's, mom.. I promised we'd go to the exhibit," answered Takeru, who recently came out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but his towel. Ms. Takaishi scrunched her brows as she chopped the meat.

"I'm getting worried. You went home so late yesterday!" she exclaimed. "And does your brother know?"

"Yes mom, I was with aniki," said Takeru, now pulling a shirt over his head. He and Hikari had planned to go to the Shinohara exhibit in Tokyo. Au contraire to Takeru's fascination for popular culture, Hikari was much more interested in art and charity. He remembered Hikari calling him through a payphone, rushing him to go to evacuation center. He immediately became a relief volunteer when the March 11 tsunami had hit Japan.

"What's going on with you and Kari? Is she your girlfriend now?"

"No, mom,"

"_Not yet_, you mean," she teased. The boy groaned.

"_Oka-saaaaaaaaan.."_

Ms. Takaishi chuckled. "I'm sorry, dear. Your brother is so good at girls, though. You should learn from him!"

Takeru rolled his eyes. Oh, if only his big brother's tricks could work on Hikari. She was exactly the no-nonsense type of girl who'd love walls more than the spotlight. Unlike the trivial things he cared about, Hikari cared for the important ones, and very humbly she showed that. Not that he disliked it – she was absolutely fitting for him – but she just didn't seem to see the same way about him. And it's this very Hikari that made him fascinated with her. And being best friends with her was already enough.

He went to the kitchen to bid goodbye to his mother. "I'm going now, mom," he said, kissing his mother on the cheek.

"You take care okay," She giggled and also planted a kiss on his cheek. "Don't forget to feed the cats outside,"

"Yes," he replied. His mother happened to have a fascination to befriend every stray cat in the neighborhood. And whenever Hikari came, she joined her to feed them – even talk to them in "meows" and "nyas". Yamato avoided them, not wanting to get scratched.

"Is Yama-kun going to come here with you later?"

"Yes. Brother and I already talked about it,"

"Okay, take care my dear!"

Takeru laughed, then kissed her cheek again. "Bye!"

* * *

_**Ishida, Y.**_  
11:10 a.m.

He wasn't able to sleep all night, alright. It was already lunch time and he hadn't gotten up from his bed aside from the time he needed to pee earlier. His dad had already left early this morning, being the usual workaholic. He felt bedridden, as if a vortex had opened up and sucked up all his physical and emotional energy. His phone kept beeping and lighting up, courtesy of Sora and Taichi.

He reached over his bedside to finally reply to Sora.

"_I'm sorry I just replied. I feel awful. I'm sorry I didn't get to tell you. I just bumped onto Mimi while I was on the way. I hope you're not angry. I love you."_

He knew she was definitely angry, though. Oh, he could tell. Yamato sighed. He didn't know how to face Sora, much more didn't know how to work things out between them. If only he didn't get so angry that time, if only he didn't get into a brawl with Taichi three months ago, if only he kept his cool – _I'm such an idiot,_ he thought, covering his face with a pillow. If only he wasn't such a jealous guy, maybe this rift won't last this long. In a few minutes Sora had replied.

"_I'm not mad. I hope you're okay. Have a good day. I love you." _She was definitely angry.

"_We should talk soon."_

"_Sure."_

And before he knew it, he was now reading Taichi's messages. The messages he didn't want to open.

"_Yamato, what do you think?"  
"Yama? _"  
"Yama-kuuuun, don't tell me you're still asleep,"  
"I think Mimi and I can make a great couple, doncha think?"  
"I need your help, man! Where are you when I need you! =.="_

If not the events of last night, Yamato would want to reply, _"Do whatever you want,"_ but after that quasi-date with Mimi at the bar, this was a very badly-timed idea from Taichi. He didn't really know what to answer. Much more Yamato was unsure what his own motives are, not wanting to be too territorial. Mimi wasn't his anything apart from being a friend, after all. _Gah, what am I thinking, this is not the right time for this,_ he thought.

He knew very well Taichi was going to the rebound route from Sora, and it's not a bad thing – _but why does it have to be Mimi, of all people?_ Yamato himself would want to quarantine her from dating (if only he had the right) 'til she's sane enough to pick the right guy, and Taichi, at this point, as much as he is a funny and attractive boy, wasn't the one she needed. And if Mimi would find out, she wouldn't like being Taichi's second.

_Why am I worrying about Mimi anyway,_ the blond thought. _It's not like she's my sister or anything._ But he felt at this point he should do what he can to be a friend. He started to type rapidly on his phone.

"_Good morning, Mimi. How are you? I hope you're okay."_

His phone started to ring. He wondered what on earth Koushiro would want to tell him on a Saturday.

* * *

_**Kido, J.**_  
12:45 p.m.

The blue-haired boy was in queue to get a handful of research papers from the collection in Todai. He didn't really have classes until spring, but he decided to get on with his research, hoping to finish it before the research conference on May.

Since he got in to college he had been more studious than before, only having to hang out with Kyoko, a friend he met at Microbiology class. He had hung out with several groups months ago, but none of which he felt akin to.

But it wasn't until early winter he had realized that he didn't have any sense of fun or excitement in him at all. This little quarter-life crisis he was having had started when he bumped on to Sora, Takeru, and Hikari on the train station last November. The meeting had made him reconnect with the group, get a bit of recklessness in him. Mimi's return had only made him feel more nostalgic. Last night, Jyou had dreamt he had met up with Gomamon and had talked to him about his problems. His companion told him to suck it up. He chuckled at the memory.

The serials section became more crowded with students from the Medicine Department, along with them reams and reams of paper, doing those assignments alone. He felt like everyone else, and unusually the idea had made him feel disgusted on himself.

Kido Jyou remembered a year ago, his brother Shuu asked him if this was what really wanted to do. He told him of course, it was. Since he was a child it was already imbued in his mind to go through this eight-year journey, here at Todai. _And here I am,_ he thought. He knew that being a doctor would mean he'd do the same things his family does. He rubbed his temples, getting a headache from the very crowded Doctor Kidos in the family; in his extended family, there are four neurologists, three dermatologists, five cardiologists, two psychologists, two ophthalmologists, and seven surgeons. He wondered if there's still even room for him.

Yesterday he had told Mimi of his interest to attend Harvard. After his little self-evaluation last night, he was sure he was going to America to take the test. _Now I just hope I'm good enough.._

It was his turn to face the student-assistant. He gave the serial number as the girl went over to the shelves to look for it. After five minutes he received a hand-bound book, and then proceeded to his own study. With his own determination in keeping his promise to meet up with Sora later, he wasted no time further and did what his professor had instructed.

* * *

_**Yagami, H.**_  
1:00 p.m.

The Ushio and Noriko Shinohara exhibit was as wonderful as Hikari had imagined, even talked to the artists themselves. Takeru, who only had heard of the New York-based artists from Mimi, was clueless with the whole happening. He didn't get abstract art that much, but he certainly fancied the female Shinohara's artistry.

"You look really cute here," said Takeru, showing HIkari a shot he took with his phone. They went to a burger joint nearby the gallery for lunch. Hikari peeped at it while taking a bite from her burger. It was a photo of her with Ushio and Noriko. "You're right, I do,"

"I wonder if we can get these developed," said Hikari, pointing to her roll of film. She ought to give the camera Mimi gave her a try.

"I think the shop near the bookstore is open," answered Takeru.

"Alright," she replied. She went on quietly to eat. Takeru stared at her for a moment, trying to think how to move the conversation further.

"Kari-chan, mom's asking why you're not visiting anymore,"

"She did?" she said in between munches. The first time Hikari met Takeru's mom was that she mistook her as her son's girlfriend. But Takeru had dodged the accusation, saying they're just friends from school.

"Yeah. She said she wanted someone to be with her when she played with the cats,"

"I can visit soon,"

Takeru then felt his phone vibrate. His brother had already cancelled, and instead will go to him tomorrow. "Aniki will no longer come later. Wanna go?"

"Okay,"

Before they went to the Takaishi residence, they went to a nostalgia shop to develop Hikari's photos. By the time Takeru got the photos as Hikari roamed around the store, the first photo he took out was a portrait of their friend Motomiya Daisuke.

"Oh, great! It's done!" the brunette chirped. She opened the envelope to check out the photos as the blond tried to make his way to direct the conversation to the boy in the photo. They left the shop and walked on their way to Takeru's place.

"So.. how's Daisuke-kun?" he asked.

"What do you mean by that, Takeru-kun? You're always with him in class," Hikari sensed his unusual inquisitiveness. It was a known fact among them that Daisuke has a very strong crush on her, and had professed his fancy to her several times. Often, she would just smile at him and laugh out of respect and sensitivity. But despite her lack of feelings for him other than friendship, he was a keeper.

"I mean.. he likes you, right?"

"Yeah, he does."

"Is it bothersome?"

"Kind of..? But not really." _Where is this going.. _she thought.

"What does that supposed to mean," he chuckled at her vague and indecisive response.

"I don't know? Does it matter?" she laughed along. Could this mean Takeru's jealous?

"I know you're confused, Kari-chan. But I think you shouldn't let it be a reason to not give him a chance, don't you think?" said Takeru. He was obviously trying to make her bite his bait, maybe he'd find out something about her not liking Daisuke, and preferring someone else. _Maybe it could be me_, he hoped. But he wouldn't risk getting caught.

The brunette just laughed, embarrassed. She changed the topic to her photographs. _Huh.. I thought wrong._

* * *

_**Yagami, T.**_  
3:02 p.m.

Every Saturdays, the Odaiba High School football team goes to campus for training. Yagami Taichi, the team captain, led the drills as the other had followed. Parallel to the field was the tennis court, where he would usually see Sora, and then they'd hang out to grab dinner. _But no more,_ he thought.

"Okay everyone, let's take a break!" he yelled.

He sat on grass, sweaty and tired. He took his bottle of water to drink, then poured the rest of it over his head. He checked his phone for messages. Yamato still had not replied to him today, and his worry had grown. _Is he sick? _He thought. _Maybe I should ask Koushiro too.._

"Taichi-kun," a familiar female voice came. He looked up and saw Sora standing beside him, a towel over her shoulder.

"Yo, Sora," he greeted back, avoiding her eyes. She fixed her skirt to sit down beside him.

"You're gonna go out early?" she asked. They were both watching the women's football team.

"Yeah,"

"How was yesterday?"

"It was nice. You really should have come," Sora just smiled.

"Did he tell you anything?"

"Not really,"

"I see,"

Taichi enjoyed the following silence between them. Since last night he was meaning to tell her, too.

"We're okay, right?" asked Sora, who was playing with her fingers.

"We are," answered Taichi. He was looking for the right words to tell her.

"Sora,"

"Taichi,"

"What do you think of me asking Mimi out?"

She looked at him, puzzled. "Where to?"

He laughed. "On a date, silly,"

"So you like her now?" _How can that be? _She thought Taichi had feelings for her. It's been what she and Yamato had been fighting about all throughout winter.

"I think so?"

"Why not ask her then," she replied, now masking the tint of jealousy in her voice. She became stiff.

"Is it okay, Sora? Mi-chan's your best friend after all," he said, feeling awkward and sheepish.

_Of course it's okay,_ she thought._ Who am I to stop him anyway? _What was confusing her more was that she couldn't really give Taichi her sincere blessing. _Taichi and Mimi.. together.. _it was possible, and it **can** make sense, but she found it really unlikely.

"Just don't hurt her, Taichi," she grimaced. "Else, I would disown you as my friend," she meant every word.

"I will not do anything to hurt her," he answered, unusually calm and collected. "She seems to have really changed from the Mimi I knew. It's not so hard to like her right now," it was true, Mimi wasn't really hard to be liked. He had a crush on her when they were children – but not as huge as he had liked Sora. As much as he had liked Mimi's sweet face, the rest about her wasn't as appealing. Until now.

"Okay," she said wryly, standing up. "I'm going back to practice,"

"Alright. Do we grab dinner later?"

"Ahh. No. I can't today, I'm going to meet up with Jyou-kun,"

"Ohh, okay,"

"See you,"

"See you,"

She then walked away. He watched Sora's slim figure become smaller as the distance between them grew. It felt like it was an unsaid goodbye, to whatever he and Sora were. His phone started ringing. He picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Taichi-kun," he instantly identified the caller. His expression turned annoyed.

"Ishida! Why haven't you been replying to my messages? At all?"

"Sorry, I slept the whole day." Taichi rolled his eyes. _Typical_.

"Well what do you think, about me and you-know-who?"

"I don't really know,"

"What do you mean _you don't really know," _asked Taichi, growing to become more irritated and impatient by his best friend's incompetence.

"I don't know, because Koushiro likes her, too,"

* * *

_**Sora, T.  
**_5:19 p.m.

Sora and Jyou silently walked the crowded street in Ueno together, looking for somewhere to eat dinner. It was dawn and the wind had gotten cooler. They went inside a pizzeria.

"How's uni, Jyou-kun?" asked Sora. They had just finished ordering their food.

"It's fine, stressful, hehe," he replied, cleaning his glasses. "I'm trying to my finish my papers as soon as possible. I plan to study in America,"

"Woah. Really? Why? You've been doing good here so far,"

"Yeah.. well.. let's say I'm getting bored? Hehe,"

She scrunched her brows. "Kido Jyou getting bored in studying?"

"There are a lot of people at uni who is like me. Studying is the only life there," he said, looking out to the window. "I kind of want to understand more of what I want, and learn more than what most people here already know,"

"I do hope you get in the school you want, and find out what you really want to do," Sora smiled, sad that he'd have to leave, but happy that he's being opportunistic. "It's hard to find something you're going to be passionate about for the rest of your life,"

Jyou smiled, admiring her maturity.

"How about you Sora-chan? Why did you want to meet up?" He already had a guess, but he wanted to make sure.

The redhead sighed. "I kind of want to know what you think," Not many were aware of her closeness with Jyou. Unlike the rest of the guys, he was the easiest to talk to, as he was very considerate of other people. Being the most mature out of them, she thought she could help him decide on what to do with her rocky relationship with Yamato.

"I would love to share my thoughts, Sora-chan," assured Jyou. "But do take my words lightly. I don't have any experience on love, after all," Not for long they were already eating pizza and a basket of chips.

"I don't understand why he's like that to me at all," complained Sora, getting another slice. She was on the verge of her tears. "I did all I could to show I love him," she took a bite. "But then, he doesn't believe it at all!" she continued, in between munches.

"I'm really hurt, Jyou-kun," she said. "It feels like he's ignoring me, too," the unusual lack of text messages from him didn't help her anxiety.

"How can he even tell me he loves me, if he's like this?" she cried, with pizza on her mouth.

"Sora-chan, don't talk while you're eating, you're going to get too much air," the blue-haired boy tried his hardest to understand what she was saying. He understood her frustration, but he didn't know how to help. Despite his close friendship with Yamato, he often found him hard to understand.

"He always talks about how I used to love Taichi, and how Taichi loves me even now," she said, wiping her tears with a napkin.

"Well guess what, I found out Taichi's planning to go for Mimi," she said it as if the universe had played the ultimate joke on her. She couldn't really figure out why she felt that way – whether it was conceit or pity that made her feel that.

"I know I'm never going to be as pretty, or as fun as Mimi," she continued as tears fell from her eyes. "But I wished people didn't make me feel so inferior,"

"Huh?" Jyou blinked several times, disregarding Sora's insecurities, unsure if he heard her right. _Taichi-kun likes Mimi-chan? _It didn't make sense to him at all, since Sora's very different from Mimi. A much grim and tragic thought had occurred to his mind. _Could he be using Mimi?_

"Yeah, you heard me right. He's gonna go after my best friend. I don't even know if he's for real. If he's just getting revenge on me or making Mimi a fallback," she continued. "But there, Yamato can just take back what he had all said. I do hope he stops forcing me as if I am still in love with Taichi,"

Jyou didn't know what to say. All he knew was that Sora is very confused. So do Yamato and Taichi. He knew the history. He knew what happened. And he felt much sorry for the clueless Mimi getting tangled in, too.

"I don't know what to say, Sora-chan," he admitted. "I don't know what Taichi-kun is up to.. but I do think Yamato-kun is like this because he's afraid of being lonely,"

She looked up at him, paused in sobbing. "Lonely?"

"He's afraid of you leaving him, along with the love you have for him," he answered, now taking a bite from his pizza. It's been a long time since he ate something as greasy and tasty, and he loved it. "I know you love Yamato-kun, but you should love yourself too, Sora-chan,"

She didn't feel like crying anymore, but she was puzzled. "I'm not sure I follow…"

He laughed. "What I mean is, you don't live your life to love others,"

Then it started to make sense to her. That as much as she loved Yamato, she didn't have enough faith in him – _just like the little faith he had on me_. He was becoming bad for her. It held truth. She felt like she was already losing herself. _Then I guess I have to find out if it's still worth it.._

"As much as I would love to follow my family's footsteps, I feel really bored and I want to get out of the mediocrity," complained Jyou. "I mean, how many Doctor Kidos do Todai need anyway," he said, laughing it off.

Sora sighed. She faintly smiled at him.

* * *

_**Mimi, T.**_  
6:00 p.m.

Tachikawa Mimi had finished talking to her parents via webcam. She found out that they will go back in Japan for good after a month or two. The rest of the day she talked to Michael and Cat, too, updating them about her life back in Japan. She also told them that Yamato already knows about her ex-boyfriend.

She also just had finished her shower, and started to dress up. She decided to wear a pink floral pullover, a pair of skinny jeans, and a black coat. She took an umbrella with her then went out of the house. She opened her phone.

Apparently she and Koushiro had been messaging each other since morning. She wondered if he was bored. Already having nothing to talk about, she replied to him.

"_I'm gonna go out to meet a friend at Palette Town, I'll talk to you soon!"_

Taichi had also messaged her, asked her if she was available tonight.

"_I'm sorry, Tai-kun, I am already meeting someone. Monday then?"_

She would have met with him tonight, if Yamato haven't asked her first.


	8. Pressure

**Author's Note: **To my reviewer Kai, the line was in the context of Yamato's feelings, and him looking for things in Yoshio that he could find faults at (not that being Asian is a fault, I'm racially half-Chinese with said typically Asian eyes). It's a petty, offensive thing Yamato had thought (he'd probably be kicked by Mimi on the shin had he voiced that out), but I wanted to put that to express how ridiculously competitive he felt at that time. It's kind of funny because the irony there was, Yamato's Japanese, like Yoshio. I know it can come off politically incorrect so I won't explain further as it does have repercussions despite good and hate-free intent. Whether or not people will take that as Yamato being racist because of a thought, will no longer be in my hands, and will be just as how people will take it. But again, I think the point there was not him being actually racist, but being _ridiculously and out-of-bounds competitive_. This chapter will slightly reveal a bit of Yamato's offensive attitude (unintentionally, of course), in spite of being cool-headed and 'mature'.

I thank you for reaching this far with my story, though. And no, I don't even think there's an ideal for good Asian eyes because of the diverse standards of beauty among Asian countries. I'm sorry if I have offended you or anyone. :-)

Now, onto chapter eight~~!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Eight  
_Pressure_

_Spring, 2015_

Mimi turned around to check her back. She smiled, amused to see herself wearing a uniform again. _Now, if only it was a better shade of blue.. _she thought, looking at the mirror. It was her seventh day in Odaiba High School, and it was lunch break.

"Sora-chan, do you think I look good in this uniform?" she asked. Now she thought the skirt had too many pleats.

"You look beautiful as always, Mi," replied Sora, who was inside a cubicle.

"I look so _booooriiiiiiing, _Sora-chan!" whined Mimi. She had her pink hair fade back to brown due to the high school uniform code. "If I have pink hair right now, my eyes would pop out from the blueness of this uniform!"

"Mi-chan, I honestly think you look better," told Sora, as she recently got out of the cubicle. She started to brush her hair.

"It's easy for you to say Sora-chan. Your ginger hair is such a good contrast from the blue," the brunette grimaced, now missing the pink hair she let go of.

"The pink looks unnatural, Mi-chan!" exclaimed Sora, who was now laughing at her.

"But that's what I want Sora-chan, I wanna be punk and _piiiiink_!" Mimi then buried her face with her messed up hair. The redhead giggled and started to brush back her best friend's hair.

"Oh Mi-chan," Sora lamented. It had been a month since Mimi had told her about her past. On a snowy Sunday morning, Mimi came ringing on her door. Surprisingly, with her was Yamato. Mimi had come in already spilling out her dirt to her; Sora felt as if she was being buried alive along with the heavy earth. Up to now she still couldn't believe it, still felt weak about it, but she had to feign her strength. Mimi needed her more than ever now.

"Taichi-kun thinks you look much more intimidating with pink hair," said Sora.

"Sora-chan," said Mimi, calling out to her best friend. She knew what Sora really felt. Despite Sora giving her unwavering support, she knew that Sora felt betrayed, despite her denial. Fortunately Taichi hadn't really _seriously_ acted up on her yet, but if he ever did, she would have to confront him and reject him.

"It's okay, Mi-chan," said Sora, faking her assurance. "What would you do if he does become serious, though?"

"I don't really know," said Mimi. "He doesn't really show it.."

"Don't be surprised," replied Sora. "It's unlikely of him to talk about his feelings,"

"I think the guys in our groups are really weak and lame," added Mimi in a joking manner.

Sora laughed, agreeing to it. She also remembered that day Yamato telling her about Taichi's little plan and Koushiro's secret crush. He was shocked to find out that she already knew, but none of the events that came after had really helped their relationship. Their last fight was about his meddling between Koushiro and Taichi's issues. Telling their secrets to Mimi, who was struggling to move on, was already enough. Anything else that followed would damage his friendship with them. Have they known what Yamato had done, would be a much larger complication.

_If Koushiro and Taichi have feelings for Mimi, then they should go for it, _she thought, now getting fueled up by her anger. She didn't like that Yamato always assumed he had the better judgment than anyone in the room. Since then, she asked for some time away from him.

"I'm remembering Yamato again," blurted out Sora, rubbing her temples. Mimi quickly came over to her side, patting the redhead's back.

"You should really make up with him," suggested Mimi. "He's been messaging me and asking me about what you're doing. Of course, I keep telling him you're fine and dandy without him,"

"Well I'm glad to know he hasn't stolen my best friend yet," chuckled Sora. She did take notice of Yamato and Mimi's friendship, feeling a little envious of their very natural banter. It was the sort of friendship that she and Taichi used to have, before all of this.

"You know where my loyalty lies, Sora-chan," winked Mimi. Shortly after, they went to the cafeteria to meet everyone else. Already there was Yamato and Taichi. Mimi, while avoiding Taichi's eyes, had caught Yamato's. She recalled their personal conversation back on a cold February night:

"_I think you should talk to Sora-chan and stop running away from the problem, Yamato-kun," she told him, rubbing her gloved hands for heat. Tonight was the coldest night in Odaiba._

"_Yeah.. I'd talk to her when the idea of breaking up with me has already left her mind," he said, taking out a box of cigarettes from his pocket. She shook her head in disbelief. _

"_Since when did you become so paranoid?" she asked, getting rid of the snow in her eyelashes. "You're just making things worse for yourself," He rolled his eyes._

"_Said by a druggie who dated fellow druggie," he mocked. She threw him a dagger of a look. Had he not been smoking and stressed, her palm would have already met his face. _

"_How very mature of you, Ishida," retorted Mimi. She realized he played really dirty when he was frustrated, and it was probably what ticked Sora off a lot._

"_Why don't you talk to your best friend and fix this for me," he said in a sarcastic tone. She sensed his frustration again._

"_I've been doing what I can.. she just doesn't seem to see my efforts.." he added in a whisper. Sora hates me now.. he thought._

_Mimi sighed, not knowing how else to soothe him as she let his offenses slide for now. His stubbornness was just as impossible as her best friend's._

"_So what do you plan to do?" he asked, his mood changing. Mimi found it an unusual sight for her to see him with a cigarette on his hand. "Taichi will ask you, and Koushiro might confess, sooner or later,"_

"_Why did you tell me this, Yamato-kun?" she turned to him, curious of his motives. "Aren't you supposed to be supporting either or both of them in pursuit of me?" _

"_Don't get it in your head, Tachikawa," chuckled Yamato. "I got worried, especially after you told me your story. I think you know the reason behind Taichi pursuing you," he continued, now lighting his cigarette._

"_I know he's my best friend and all, and Koushiro's also my friend – but they're still guys without any relationship experiences. It's just something you have to keep in mind.. so you won't have to commit stupid mistakes again," he said, barely audible as the cigarette was in between his lips._

"_I'm not saying you should completely push away the idea of going out with them, though. I just wish you'd be more careful." he scolded, hinting on Yoshio. He threw her a dangerous look._

_The pink-haired Mimi weakly smiled, appreciated his concern, and not liking how he seemed to have figured it all out. _

"_You're right. I should be more careful with these things," she admitted. Anyone who could sweep her off her feet, with a few chivalrous gestures and sweet talk, can easily make her fall in love, and it was a flaw she knew very well of herself. Hence, Yoshio, she told herself. _

"_So, what do you plan to do?" he asked, now exhaling out smoke from his mouth and nostrils. It's been a year since his bandmate Shinji had talked him into trying nicotine. Today just happened to be one of the days he needed it. _

"_Tai-kun or Kou-kun?" he teasingly added._

"_Neither?" she chuckled. "I don't know what to do, really," They were standing on front of the Rainbow Bridge. The smell of nicotine had stoked her cravings. "I should act like I know nothing," _

"_Suit yourself," he replied. "but now that you know, if anything happens, at least you can plan ahead to do something about it."_

_She nodded. "Yeah, I know," she grabbed the cigarette from his mouth and took a puff. It was Seven Stars, the same as what Yoshio usually smoked. _

_He immediately took the cigarette out of her hands and threw it off to the ocean. She felt embarrassed as he glared at her. "What the hell is the matter with you!"_

"_You're sounding awfully like dad," she spat, but then realized she was at the wrong side of her reason. "Sorry. The smell just makes me crave," _

"_Didn't you get yourself to rehab or something?" He asked. He didn't like being the only one to keep her secret._

"_I wasn't an addict," she defended. She was an occasional user, only having to use it when she and her ex were together; but right after she and Yoshio had broken up, the smell of nicotine made her want to smoke. She did her best not to give in. _

"_It kind of just reminded me of him."_

Yamato minded his own rice box at the sight of Sora and Mimi coming over.

"Yamato-kun, do I look okay?" asked Taichi, who had become very conscious of his bushy hair.

"You look fine. Don't fuss, you're not wearing anything special," he replied bluntly. He caught Mimi looking at him, as if she was anxious. He just smirked. The two girls sat on front of them.

"Where'd you want to go later, Mi?" asked Taichi, expecting he and Mimi to be together later. Taichi thought it was a nice front, especially now that Sora and Yamato are witnessing it. Before the brunette could reply, Koushiro had already sat with them.

_This would be interesting_, speculated Yamato. Taichi had gone stiff, and Mimi, obviously more nervous. He noticed that Sora was also watching. _Like a telly drama,_

Mimi breathed deeply after drinking her soup. She had promised to act completely oblivious of Taichi and Koushiro; though she just couldn't help but be wary of Sora and Yamato – _especially Yamato_ – who seemed to be making fun of her as he kept glancing and smirking at her.

"Hey Koushiro-kun," Sora broke in the silence.

"Sora-chan," he greeted back, completely oblivious that all of them knew.

"So.. Mi-chan? – Ow!" exclaimed Taichi as Yamato had nudged him hard by the elbow. Sora saw this and glared at the blond. Mimi, who had caught Sora, thought she needed to reply – _and quick._

"I'm sorry, I promised to be home early today," she excused. It had been two weeks since her parents had come back.

"Oh. That's too bad," he sounded very disappointed. For days he had been subtly asking her to go with him somewhere, but something would always disrupt. "Next time then?"

"Okay."

Yamato stood up from his seat, his empty rice box with him. "Taichi-kun, can you help me with something?" Taichi had followed, bringing along his spotless plate.

Mimi sighed in relief, as if it was the first time she had breathed air. _This is going to be hard._ Since she started going to school with them, lunch had always been this tense.

"I'll just go to the bathroom, Sora-chan," she stood up and excused herself.

_That was close.._thought Sora as she ate from her porridge. _Taichi seems to be really serious, too.. _It felt like a slap on her face. Taichi haven't fought for her feelings at all. _'I'm in love with you', so he said.._

"Sora-chan,"

"Yes, Koushiro-kun?" He was calmly eating his own porridge.

"Does Taichi-kun like Mimi-chan?"

* * *

"What were you doing?" hissed Yamato. They were in line for returning dishes.

"I was asking Mimi out," he replied. His nonchalant mood turned dark. "Why? What's wrong now?"

"Koushiro's there," he retorted. "Since you know about his feelings, maybe you should be more sensitive about his,"

"He doesn't know I know his feelings,"

"That's not the point," groaned Yamato. Taichi rolled his eyes and sighed. It frustrated him that so many things had been hindering his way in asking Mimi out, or having to ever get her out, mostly for the same reasons Yamato had told him before. But he had no other choice but to trust his best friend's expertise.

"Yeah, yeah. I get it," admitted Taichi. "I'll be more careful,"

"You better be," replied Yamato, as he returned his dish. "Mimi will not like it if she finds out you and Koushiro are suddenly not talking to each other,"

Taichi agreed, remembering how she looked out for him and Yamato when they were at their rift. He felt a bit discouraged, realizing he now had to fight. "Do you even think I should pursue this? It feels wrong now," he lamented, now returning his bowl.

"I don't think it's something that's wrong or right, Taichi-kun," said Yamato, remembering what Sora had told him. "Is Mimi worth the fight?"

Taichi felt taken aback. What he had been facing now was exactly what Yamato had done before – choosing between a girl and a friend. Yamato had made his point clear._ I would have done the same._

* * *

Sora dropped her spoon, shocked at Koushiro's query_. How did he know?_

"I don't really know, Koushiro-kun," she admitted, picking up the utensil from the table. There was a fine line of Taichi between actually being interested in Mimi and just taking her as a rebound. "He does seem like it, though,"

The other redhead sighed, despaired. He pushed his porridge away from him. "I see,"

"Is there something wrong, Kou-kun?"

"Ahh.. No.." Taichi was still a competition – a tough one nonetheless. And he didn't know how a video-game-playing and comic book-loving geek like him can ever be liked by Mimi. Back then, the thought of being friends forever was enough, until now.

"You're lying,"

He smiled at her. "Yeah, I am." He had always liked Mimi. _Always. _He didn't know it would have grown into something more. Much more, didn't know Taichi would go for Mimi. Whatever his friend's motives were, it only meant one thing for him – he had to choose.

"I think you should just tell Taichi."

"Yeah, I should."

Not long after, Taichi and Yamato had returned. Sora had left the table to check up on Mimi. Koushiro braced himself to face his dear friend Taichi..

"Koushiro-kun, can we hang out later after class?"

It looks like he didn't have to ask Taichi anymore.

* * *

_Ahh. What do I do_.. she thought. _They'd find out soon enough,_ she was frantic, walking back and forth in the girls' lavatory. She had a lightened cigarette in between her fingers, yet to meet her lips, battling her craving.

Mimi liked playing games of courtship with strangers and men obviously attracted to her just for the looks, but this was definitely something else. She sighed, imagining what if she went out with one of them. She didn't want to hurt both of them either. The door opened, revealing Sora.

"Sora-chan," She was having a withdrawal, having to remember the feelings she had for Yoshio, and the pain that came with it, had made her feel more vulnerable.

Mimi was greeted by Sora's surprised face. _Do I smell nicotine? _She came over to her side.

"Mimi-chan.. are you oka—huh? What's this?" she hastily took the cigarette from her fingers and pressed it down the sink. It wasn't until now Sora had fully come to realize what Mimi had actually been going through. _I guess Yamato's right after all,_ she thought.

"You can't do this, Mi-chan, if you really want to be okay you—" the brunette had cut her scolding off.

"Sora-chan, I can't do it," cried Mimi. She started walking back and forth. "I'm not ready, Sora-chan. I don't want to get my heart broken again,"

Sora took her by the shoulders, trying to calm her down. After a few minutes she had soothed Mimi. A gush of fear came over, not liking what she had seen earlier_. But she needs me now.._

"I think I need to tell them," said the brunette, sniffling. She didn't like the conflict, much more the pain it might bring to Taichi and Koushiro – all because of her. "But I'm scared that they'll judge me,"

"If they judge you, then none of them deserves your love, or your friendship," said Sora, recalling what Jyou had told her before.

After fixing Mimi up, they went back to the group. Mimi had politely asked Koushiro and Taichi to be with her after school. With nothing much else to say, Koushiro and Mimi went back together to their room, as Yamato, Sora, and Taichi did too, as soon as the lunch bell rang.

Classes after lunchtime had been nothing more but pensive and reflective. When the sky had finally turned orange, and when the school bell sounded its final ring, Taichi waited on front of Mimi and Koushiro's class. No one else went along with them, or had known where they went off to.

"Yamato-kun,"

The blond turned to her redhead, hands frozen from packing his school stuff. This was the first time they had talked in person since their fight.

"The cherry blossoms are back," she said, looking outside, where a branch of a sakura tree was framed by the classroom windows.

"Yeah, they are," He was looking at it too, unusually feeling peaceful.

"Can you walk me home today?"

The blond noticed the hint of dreading in her voice that came along with her child-like, confident face.

"Okay," it was the last time they walked together, hand-in-hand.


	9. Aftermath

**Author's Note: **Such kind words, Ahiko! Thank you. :-) I hope you enjoy this simpler chapter.

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Nine  
_Aftermath_

_Their feet were in slow motion. Sora asked him to walk her home, but they were heading somewhere else._

"_Yamato-kun, did you remember the place where we first hung out together?" she asked, cheerfully. _

"_The ice creamery near the music hall?" He remembered the day he bumped onto her while going home after band practice. She was sulking, her head bowed, as she carried a small box with her hand._

"_Yeah, that one." _

"_Why? Do you want to go there?"_

"_Yeah.. I just feel like it."_

_And so they did, and ate ice cream there. She had chocolate while he had strawberry. Sora looked at him, noticing how quiet he had been since they left school. The first time they went here was the day Taichi gave her a hair clip, followed by his insult. Mimi had already left the country and there was no else to talk to about how insensitive Taichi was._

"_I was crying because of Taichi," she blurted. He looked at her in confusion. "The first time we went here. I was crying because of Taichi." She added. _

"_So that's what it was about,"_

"_Yeah,"_

"_So.. he's the _bloody git,_ huh," he smirked. She nodded and laughed with him._

"_That was the time we became close," she continued, licking off of her cone. It was that very day that she talked about her mother, her estranged feelings for her father, her insecurities; while he shared his parents' divorce, his separation anxiety with Takeru, and his battle with constant loneliness. No one could have understood them the way each other did. That day, the dawn became night, and neither of them had noticed. _

"_Then some time after, you gave me your cookies before the concert,"_

"_Yeah. Though, you didn't really say anything when you took them,"_

"_I was surprised, I didn't know what to say,"_

"_At least you didn't reject me,"_

"_Why would I? I already liked you."_

_She smiles at him, takes him by the hand and runs off to somewhere. She led him to the very ground where she confessed. Both of them standing there, she smiles at him, she says: _"Thank you for everything, I'm sorry for everything."

_And she finally uttered what they both dreaded to hear._

* * *

It had been four days since Sora had ended things between them. She had called in Mimi and Hikari for a girls' only sleepover. It still felt unreal, that anytime she'd be expecting Yamato by her doorstep, asking her to take him back. _Not anymore._

"Sora-chan!" yelled Mimi. The redhead got back to her own dimension.

"I'm sorry," she said, wiping the corner of her eyes. "I'm remembering things,"

"Well don't, you are way out of his league now," assured an unusually much more hyper Mimi, trying her best to make her feel better the only way she knew how. Sora appreciated their efforts, with Mimi having baked her favorite cupcakes and cooked her favorite pasta, while Hikari brought her the necessary amount of chocolate ice cream and her favorite junk food. "A man is not a man when he is too clingy!"

"Or moody," added Hikari. The two brunettes were hoping a reaction from her.

"You're spacing out again, Sora-chan," said Hikari. "We should watch something light, all these romantic movies Mi-chan brought are too sad!"

"No, no, no, Kari-chan," argued Mimi. "Tearjerker movies at this phase are the most effective way Sora-chan can move on. You just let it all out, dear!" she said, spoiling Sora.

"No, I'm okay, I don't feel like crying," said Sora. The two shot her a glare, not liking that she was in denial again. And so she let down her defenses, and cried in Mimi's arms. Mimi shots Hikari a look, with the same worried expression on their face. It was the fifth time Sora had cried today.

"So.. anyone want to watch _Grave of the Fireflies?_" suggested Hikari.

"But that's not romance," murmured Sora on Mimi's sleeve.

"Or tearjerking, Kari-chan," added Mimi, as she patted Sora at the back to calm her down

"Hmmmm. Takeru-kun said it will surely make us cry though.." The youngest of them searched for something more suiting from their collection. "_Akai Ito?"_

"Is that the movie version?" asked Sora, who was still sobbing.

"Yeah,"

"Ohhh this will be good," exclaimed Mimi, who was now reading the summary of the movie.

* * *

_"Can I at least know why?" he croaked. He hated that she had picked to break up here – __**here**__ – _of all places.

"_I'm not feeling like I'm myself anymore.."  
"I'm burning out."  
"I did love you with all I've got,"_

_She said them like bullets. And so did I, he thought. But I'm not the one giving up_.. _Though, today,_ _he will no longer protest. He grips her hand tight, admitting his defeat._

All things that happened after that day were like blurry images in random colors. _Ping!_

Yamato snapped back from reminiscing. He got up from his bed, limped his way downstairs to answer the doorbell. It rang again. _Ugh.. who the hell_.. he opened the door, found his brother Takeru with a grocery bag. He welcomed himself in and sat on the sofa. Yamato closed the door.

"Where's dad?"

"Work,"

"Aniki! You look horrible." said Takeru, pointing at his brother's swollen eyes.

"Do I now? I don't care," he replied dryly, obviously feeling sick. "Why are you here? I told you already I'll be the one coming over,"

Takeru stared at him, ignoring his grumpy attitude. "_That_ bad, huh,"

Yamato sighed, unable to mask the feelings written on his face. "Yeah."

He went to the kitchen to prepare Takeru his lunch. "Taichi-kun and I will be meeting later," he said.

"Oh.. I see. Can I come?"

"I'll ask him if you can,"

"Okay!"

"We don't have beef anymore so you should just deal with the pork," said Yamato, who was now defrosting the meat.

"I'm fine with anything, really." His older brother came back to the living room and sat beside him. He was still in his pyjamas. This was perhaps the first time Takeru couldn't say anything to help his brother. He didn't have any experience on such, or have had anyone shared their post-breakup problems with him yet. He did bring a few of his favorite snacks and some of his favorite beer, as Hikari had advised, but other than that, he was clueless.

"Check this out," said Yamato, as he handed him a piece of paper. _Lyrics? _thought Takeru.

Yamato sat on the other side of the living room, with his guitar on hand. He started to play. The younger brother had no words; his heart suddenly became heavy when his brother started to sing while tears fell from his eyes. This was one of the many firsts.

A few hours had passed and the room was absent of guitar sounds. After cooking and eating the lunch his brother was supposed to prepare, Takeru put over a blanket over Yamato's body. He seemed to have fallen asleep while writing songs, as Takeru took notice of the pen closed in his hand. He took the crumpled piece of paper on the floor, opened it. It wasn't a song, but a love letter that desperately asked for Sora to come back to him.

* * *

Sora had fallen asleep while watching the movie. Mimi and Hikari had just finished watching Akai Ito, leaving both girls crying their hearts out.

"I can't believe this," said Mimi. "Why did you make me watch this, Kari-chan,"

"I'm sor-_hic_-ry, I didn't –_hic_\- know it was this sad, -_hic_-!" replied a sniffling Hikari.

"I can't believe this, Mei and Atsushi," cried Mimi. "they were definitely me and Yoshio,"

"Huh.. what.." the other brunette asked, surprised and confused as she blew her nose. "Who is Yoshio?"

"Yoshio, my ex from America,"

"You never told me you had an ex,"

"I think it was a Sid and Nancy kind of thing," breathed Mimi, as she hesitated to tell the young girl her tale. "I don't really know if you know them but—"

"I know them, Takeru-kun told me," interrupted Hikari. She was getting used to all the Western references Mimi and Takeru kept throwing in conversations. She paused for a while, thinking behind Mimi's words. She took it as a hint that it was a really abusive, rated-R kind of relationship. She didn't pry any longer and changed the focus, as the thought of it was already disturbing.

"Does my onii-chan know?"

"Yeah."

"How did he react?"

Mimi looked at Sora, relieved she was still asleep. "He didn't say anything. He just hugged me,"

They went silent for a while, now coming to realize they had to talk about Taichi and the surprising development of events.

"Can I be honest, Mi-chan?"

"What is it?"

"I don't really know what my brother's up to," she said, hesitating. "At first, I couldn't believe that he was really going after you," The older brunette breathed heavily and pushed herself back to lie down on the futon.

"I know," She stared at the ceiling. She knew the whole truth, as well as the half-truths.

"I don't know if he has really gotten over Sora-chan, or he's just trying to bounce back," said Hikari, as she glanced at Sora's sleeping figure. "But I do know he likes you, either way. And I hope you'd give him a chance – but at the same time, you'd be careful,"

"I know," repeated Mimi. It was the same warning and encouragement everyone had given her. She had no choice but to take them all. Whatever it was with Taichi, she'd find out the truth eventually. Sora had finally waken up, but remained motionless as she listened to their conversation.

"What about Koushiro-kun?" asked Hikari.

Mimi sighed. The time she confronted both of them, Koushiro had only patted her on the back, then left her and Taichi alone.

"I don't know. He didn't say anything.." she said. "He just left,"

"He left?"

"More like, walked away," she assumed he was really sad hearing it. In their classes they would still greet each other as usual, talk about trivial things, but since the day she told her secret, he had remained consistently absent at lunch time with everyone.

"Ahhh. We're becoming a little gloom! Let's get this heavy atmosphere out of us, how are you and Takeru-kun?" asked Mimi, forcing a smile.

"I don't know. We're just friends," she replied sheepishly as she hugged a pillow.

"It's quite odd because it's just you and him together most of the time," argued Mimi as she sat up.

"I know. But.. I kind of don't want to read into things," she replied. "He's complicated to understand,"

_Takeru? Complicated?_ If Takeru was anything, despite his knack for being cultured, was still a boy. _A very stereotypical boy_, thought Mimi. She wondered how Takeru could be like that, having to live with his mother all throughout his life. _And there's Ishida to guide him,_ she thought.

"What do you guys do anyway? When you're together?"

"I don't really know.. we talk?"

"Talk?"

"Yeah. Movies.. stuff.. everything.."

"Don't you guys ever run out of things to talk about?"

"Not on my experience," she giggled. "He's always thinking about something,"

"Do you like him?" asked Mimi, despite already knowing the answer.

"I do," she said without hesitation. "But I don't know if I'd really want him as a boyfriend,"

"Why?"

"_Chivalry is dead,"_ answered Hikari. Whatever she and Takeru were, she realized it would be best for her not to think too much about it, having her expectations disappoint her several times.

Mimi scrunched her eyebrows, confused. "What on earth are you talking about? All these metaphors.. you're starting to sound like him."

Hikari just giggled. She excused herself to go to the kitchen and bring in the brownies. Mimi glanced at Sora.

"I know you're awake, Sora-chan," called out Mimi. The blanket-wrapped figure squirmed as she took off part of the sheet covering her face. She was crying again. The brunette felt heartbroken, unable to say anything comforting.

"You can tell me what you're thinking," she said.

"I wonder if I really did love Yamato," the heart-wrenched girl muffled.

"What are you saying.. you loved him more than he'll ever feel love in his entire life," but Sora knew Mimi was exaggerating just to make her feel better.

"Maybe I should take back what I said, you know? I was just being selfish, I didn't want to break up.. we could still work it out,"

Mimi watched the redhead desperately look for her phone, saddened_._ She had already seen this coming; that Sora would try to patch things up again with Yamato. She saw Hikari peeping from the kitchen, mouthing that the phone is with her.

Mimi continued to watch Sora ramble and sob. She felt much more convinced not to get hurt anymore by a careless romance – and definitely not by Taichi, or Koushiro.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Taichi-kun, aniki fell asleep," apologized Takeru. Taichi had come visited his brother, after realizing Yamato had already ditched him at the train station for two hours.

"It's okay. I wished he bothered picking up his phone though. People thought I was a loony homosexual," ranted Taichi. He was aware that people get scared of him when his face becomes obviously angry. Having to mention Yamato's name several times made him sound like a clingy boyfriend.

"How's he taking it?"

The younger blonde pointed at the pieces of paper scattered on the table. Taichi sighed and sat on the sofa.

"Kari-chan told me that she and Mimi-chan are at Sora's. I was supposed to take Yamato to a bar so we could drink but.." he opened his rucksack to bring out the video game Yamato had been wanting last year. "I'm not really sure how to do this right, Kari said I should bring stuff he likes to make him feel better,"

"Me neither," agreed Takeru, looking at the grocery bag he brought. "I've never seen him this depressed since our parents' divorce," he sat beside Taichi. An awkward silent fell between the two.

"Are you and Kari-chan dating?"

"No."

He looked at Takeru, surprised at his very flat reply. He didn't buy it, and ought to test him.

"I think she likes you,"

"No, I don't think so, _Tai-kun_,"

_Hmm. Something's wrong,_ he thought. "Well I think she does and I think you should go after her,"

Takeru sighed. _Oh, how I wish you were right._ The last time they were together, she was being overly friendly with Daisuke. Since then, he tagged along with them. _And here I thought, she didn't like the attention._

"It's nothing like that, Tai-kun,"

"You're unbelievable, I'm already giving my blessing!" _Maybe my sister's not attractive anymore?_ He guessed. _What could she have done to be such an unlikable woman?!_

The blond chuckled, thought it was time to turn the tables. "So.. how are you and Mimi-chan?"

"You're changing the subject, aren't you?" he was blushing.

"Yeah."

"There's nothing between us."

"A week ago you said you're ready to make your moves,"

"I wish," snickered Taichi. Having to find out Mimi's past in New York made him hesitant. It felt as if he wasn't ready to hurt her – and he wasn't ready to get hurt by her either. Mimi had gone through things that even he had no experience or knowledge about, and this new development with Yamato and Sora had made him more confused, feeling as if he wasted all the times he was brave enough to let Sora go.

"It's Mimi-chan, just be honest with her," assured Takeru, giving him a pat on the back. When Taichi made no response, he decided to put out the bait. "Unless you're going to become a turncoat and go after Sora-chan," he said in a playful manner.

"Huh? Of course not," he swiftly replied. But the thought had been in his mind since Yamato had told him, and he couldn't deny Takeru was right.

"Taichi-kun," Yamato was already awake, but his eyes still shut.

"Yamato-kun,"

The heartbroken Yamato opened his eyes. Taichi held back his laughter not to laugh at Yamato's reddened face.

"We're going to drink, right?"

"Yeah.." he said. "Here's something to cheer you up," he threw Yamato the video game at his direction.

Yamato made a small smile as he caught his very own copy of _Civilization: Beyond Earth_. The little effort from Taichi managed to make him feel a bit better. "Maybe I should just become gay,"

The two brothers laughed as Taichi flipped his finger at him.

"Okay. Just let me prepare." He stood up and went upstairs to fix himself. Taichi heard Yamato rant that he needed a shave and a haircut; but also telling him how good he is now that he can start writing songs again and make it big.

Taichi sighed, ran a hand through his hair, wishing that giving up his feelings for Sora in the first place was not absolutely in vain.


	10. Showmanship

**Salad Days**

Chapter Ten  
_Showmanship_

Takeru scrunched his eyebrows, unamused at the sight of Hikari talking to Daisuke. Daisuke was asking her to take some pictures for their football match later today. It seemed that Hikari had already agreed, since she's a photographer for their school paper.

Motomiya Daisuke is one of Takeru's closest friends in his class, having already spent a lot of time with him when he came back to the Digital World. Though a bit brash and tactless, Daisuke was a better leader than he was, and he respected him for it. Takeru had already figured him all out. Daisuke was a happy kid going for the simpler things in life, unamused by questions that start with "what if" and "maybe". Unlike his own reference-based humor, Daisuke knew how to make people laugh, _effortlessly._ Takeru liked everything about him, except the fact that Hikari had seen all his good qualities, too.

He had noticed Hikari disappear in the room. _Huh.. where could she have gone to.._

His searching eyes then met Daisuke's. He was happier than the usual. It was no secret he has a crush on HIkari, and _something must have happened,_ he thought. Daisuke waved at him, and Takeru waved back.

Not much longer Hikari had entered the room and then went back to Daisuke's table. _Well, this is annoying.. _there she was, giving away free smiles at him. Takeru looked back to his book, trying to divert his attention.

After a little more chitchat, Hikari was now on her way towards his table. She was always on Takeru's radar, and he kept up his façade, looking cool and uninterested.

"What is it?"

"Can you come with me later? Dai-kun asked me to cover the game later," she asked, faintly blushing.

"Hmm."

"Takeru-kun," she scolded, her arms now crossed.

"_Dai-kun,_ is it.."

"What now.."

"Nothing.. Hehe. I bet you'd want to see him in his jersey shorts, am I right?" the blond joked.

"You're weird," she turned her heels, now returning to her seat.

"I always am," he snickered.

* * *

It has been a month, and surprisingly, neither had made their move – to ask and beg the other to stay. Sora had bought most of Mimi's free time, spending time away from the group's lunch table to be together alone. Yamato still took his lunch along with the others, but was out of sight after school. Koushiro had resumed joining them every lunch, still kept being friendly with Taichi, but was having a hard time to face Mimi.

Yamato turned around as he felt a force against his back.

"Mimi," Yamato was in queue for purchasing bread, lazily thinking how mundane his life is, until a certain little brunette started to push him from the back. She was glaring like at him like a child that had been robbed of candy.

Mimi was looking upwards, obviously frustrated by his tall physique. "Ishida,"

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, ignoring how crowded the lunch line was. She didn't say anything and continued to glare at him, as if she was attempting to burn him with her stare.

"You're being ridiculous," said Yamato, now turning his back on her as he put his hands in his pockets.

"Am not! You are making Sora miserable,"

"For the record, princess, she broke up with me," he retorted.

"But why do I have to be miserable too? I haven't gone anywhere except to that ice cream shop Sora keeps taking me to! I'm getting a lot of belly fat, must you know," she complained, her arms crossed.

He turned around as soon as she mentioned the ice creamery; reckoned Sora was just as miserable as him. _She's probably regretting,_ he thought. But he had already made up his mind; despite how miserable of a person he will turn out without her, he wouldn't give a dime on coming back as her lover. He'd rather deal with his demons than her having to put up with them.

"Yeah, you look chubbier," he taunted. She looked at him with horror, her hands ran through her blouse and coat.

"I am, aren't I? My arms are turning into batwings with all the sugar," she said. "I can't help it though, the sugar compensates for my nicotine craving,"

"You're becoming a lot more shameless with me, aren't you?" he snickered.

"The next thing you'll know you'd accompany me to shopping," she said, going along with his sarcasm. His face turned darker.

"Hell no,"

"Oh, who knows," she giggled. He turned his head, threw her a look.

"Have you talked to Taichi?"

"No," she replied, her mood changing. "Why must you remind me?"

"He told me earlier he'd talk to you one of these days,"

"He's probably scared of me right now," she lamented. "I mean, I'd understand why the others would rather keep off my grass,"

They talked a bit more about Taichi, and what was going inside Koushiro's head until they both reached the counter. Yamato had bought her the bread she wanted as a little token of their blossoming friendship. They were now out of the queue. Sora was waiting for Mimi at the leftmost corner of the area.

"I kind of know you better, and like you better now," he admitted, now unpacking his bread. He took a bite, awing at the taste of cheese. "It was so annoying when you seemed so perfect,"

She rolled her eyes. "But I am perfect, Ishida. I'm smart, pretty, nice, it's totally understandable why you'd feel as if the world's so unfair,"

"You really can stop doing that," he mumbled, his mouth full of food.

"Oh, but I am," she teased, before going to a more serious, sadder expression. "Well, I used to be,"

"Tch," He flicked her forehead playfully. "Well anyway, tell Sora I said 'hi',"

"You're evil,"

"I know," he said with a wink, then went over to their table. Mimi returned to her table, and was greeted by Sora's anxious face.

"Were you talking to him?" she asked, trying to speak normally.

"Yeah,"

Sora slowly took up the courage to ask Mimi further. "What did he say?"

"He says 'hi',"

"Mimi," scolded Sora.

"Sorry. Nothing much, we just talked about how things were going," replied Mimi, who was eating her bread. "I think he's doing okay now, Sora-chan,"

Sora played with her soup, now disinterested. "He is, isn't he.."

The redhead guessed Yamato really had let go of her for good. Maybe if she showed any regret, he'd think otherwise? _No.. I did this. I made my bed,_ argued Sora.

"Well, you don't have to worry about him anymore, right? Maybe we can go back to eating lunch together with everyone!" encouraged Mimi. Sora gave an awkward smile, then nodded.

A few meters away, overlooking to Mimi and Sora's table was Taichi.

"So, she really didn't say anything else?" asked Taichi. Yamato groaned, annoyed that he had to repeat his answer.

"No."

"Then what about Sora?"

"What about her? She's fine," the blond snorted, biting from his bread. He had already aced his disguise, and he knew how to cover his unhappiness very well. While he and Taichi are now back to normal, talking about Sora with him was still hard. He turned to his other side, where Koushiro was silently eating his meal.

"Say, Koushiro, how do you manage to get so rich at Civilization?" he asked, hoping he'd fire up a conversation.

"I thought I already told you that, Yamato-kun," replied Koushiro, surprised. They were talking about the strategy game that he, Yamato, and Takeru played together online.

"But every time I choose to play as a war country like Japan, I get bankrupt eventually despite my very small number of units and fast production in cities," he argued. "Takeru seems to be doing fine playing as the Aztec civilization, which is more of a warmongering civilization than I am,"

"You should create more happiness in your country – get more luxuries or be allies with city-states," he suggested, now interested with their conversation. "Whenever I play a warmongering civilization I make sure I get lots of happiness. Hehe. Everything else will just follow,"

"Why am I not included in this conversation," said Taichi, out of the blue. The camaraderie between Koushiro and Yamato made him feel insecure. Since the day Koushiro found out his feelings for Mimi, he could tell that he became cautious of him, despite his friendly nature.

"Because you keep complaining and losing," spat Yamato. Taichi didn't have the patience to play long games like they did, and every Civilization game that Yamato, Koushiro and Takeru played had lasted for two to three days. On said weekends, Taichi would be at the school field, training with the rest of his team.

"Koushiro-kun said he'd teach me the tricks, but it never happens," complained Taichi. "How can you always be coincidentally busy whenever I ask you?"

But Koushiro shrank from his seat, hiding himself in Yamato's figure. He sheepishly smiled, did not say a thing. He did not know how to talk to Taichi without stuttering or running out of words, much more they both have not talked about their similar feelings for Mimi.

"Ahh, I'll just take these back," he excused himself, taking his tray with him. Taichi grunted, ran a hand through his hair out of frustration.

"I think you should talk to him." suggested Yamato, as he ate up the rest of his bread. Even he had noticed Koushiro tiptoeing around Taichi.

"What do you think I'm doing?" spat Taichi, his hand toying his fork. "He's obviously avoiding me."

Yamato sighed. He turned around, successfully got a glance of Sora's face. She was a painful sight, but he remained his eyes on her.

* * *

Hikari was absentmindedly doodling at the corner of her English textbook. Two seats on front of her, Takeru was fluently reciting an excerpt from the book.

_How can onii-chan say Takeru likes me?_ she debated. _Takeru's always pairing me up with Daisuke._ Earlier today she had just asked Takeru to accompany her later. The fact that it took her a lot of guts and one trip to the bathroom was already a big move for her. In the end she didn't know if Takeru had accepted or not, and the uncertainty was distracting.

She glanced at Daisuke, and caught him staring at her. She gave a sheepish smile, opened her textbook and tried to avoid looking at either of the boys.

It wasn't until the lunch bell that she managed to ask Takeru again.

"So, are you coming with me, or not?" she asked, as she, Daisuke, and Takeru walked on their way to their 'usual' spot. Along with them are their own bento boxes. They'd exchange food; Daisuke would usually get half of Hikari's rice; Hikari would get the abundance of vegetables present in Takeru's box; and Takeru would get half of Daisuke's fish.

"You should come, Take-kun, watch me do my striker moves!" encouraged Daisuke. The blond laughed.

"Alright, alright, I'll go," he said. "But only because you guys asked me to. Football matches make me sleepy," But mostly, it was because he wanted to study Hikari's behavior around Daisuke. If she'd turn into a fangirl later, he will have to rethink his own pursuit of Hikari.

"How could you even get bored with the greatest sport on earth?!" exclaimed Daisuke. He knew Takeru was never in to sports, but he reckoned football and baseball would be his exceptions, since Takeru only liked _things that made sense._

"I don't get bored of football, _Dai-kun_," replied Takeru. He glanced at Hikari upon using the nickname. "I get bored with _bad_ football players,"

"Are you mocking me now, Takaishi?" he snapped, and Takeru, as always, just laughed.

"Just make sure you'd entertain me," he chuckled. The other boy scowled, turned to walk beside the brunette. Takeru looked away as he caught Hikari giggle because of Daisuke's gesture.

"So.. you're coming later?" Hikari repeated.

"I just said I will, Kari-chan,"

She smiled at him, genuinely, and it made him fluster. "Okay. Help me take good shots then!"

* * *

By the time the last school bell chimed, the blond was waiting outside the girls' lavatory, where habitually Sora and Mimi would be together after school.

Sora was stunned at the sight of him. "What are you doing, Yamato-kun?"

He looks at her direction, surprised as well. "Ahh.. sorry, it's not what you think,"

A group of friends had passed them by, staring at Sora and Yamato as some poorly volume-down whispers had reached the then-couple's ears. Their separation has become one of the most talked about in school, especially among the girls.

"Sora-chan, do you think I should cut off my hair or –" Mimi had just went out of the bathroom, cut off at the sight of Yamato _with_ Sora. She smiled at them both, turned around to give them some privacy.

"Okay, I'll just get going then—" but Yamato had already caught her wrist.

"Hey, Ishida! What are you doing?" She stared at him, puzzled what was going on. Sora was just as confused, too. The little commotion had earned them quite an attention – even Taichi's, who just got out of the classroom.

"Mimi. I need to talk to you,"

"Talk about what? We can talk later! Text me or something!" Yamato turned to Sora, ignoring the brunette's protests.

"I'm sorry, is it okay if I borrow Mimi for today?" Mimi had kept complaining, while Sora, too shocked, just nodded.

"Thanks," without any dillydallying he dragged Mimi with him as they both disappeared from the stairs. Mimi's shrilly voice eventually faded as well.

_He wasn't looking for me?_ Sora felt as if she got slapped on the face, having her expectations disappoint her yet again. For the past month Yamato had stood firm along with her decision – a now seemingly reckless decision – and as more days have passed, the more she had regretted.

_No_, forget regret, what probably hurt her more was that he looked for Mimi. And he'd probably look for any other girl than her, and those girls will probably be more important than her now.

The thought had made her mind blank, and her eyes sting; she was just about to give in to her feelings until a familiar heavy hand suddenly rested itself on her shoulder. She looked at the tanned, calloused hand, then titled her head to the side.

Taichi heaved. "I know what you're thinking,"

"Mind telling me what's going on?" she said out of bitterness. There was one thing she was sure of: Yamato was still in her life, and she was already out of his.

* * *

_Where is he?_ she frantically thought. Takeru told her he'll just run an errand for the English club, but that was already forty minutes ago. The game was about to start in five minutes, but not a sign of him was seen. Hikari peeped through her camera, zooming over Daisuke's team and the rival team of the other district in the junior league.

She saw Daisuke, in his football uniform and cleats, run towards her direction. She waved at him.

"Where's Takeru?" he asked.

"I don't know," she replied.

"Try calling him,"

"Ahh.. I did not think of that.." whispered Hikari. She took out her small phone from her camera bag, dialed Takeru. He had picked up after four rings.

"Where are you? The game's about to start," she shouted, as the crowd and the cheering squad were getting louder.

"I'm sorry, I need to go," Hikari reckoned he was already at downtown as she heard motors and jingles.

"What?!" Or, translation, _are you ditching me?_

"Aniki called, said he needed me for something,"

"Okay." _And so he did, _she thought.

"Sorry. Give Daisuke-kun my good luck!" She ended the call, not giving him the opportunity to say goodbye. No way she would, right when just he blew her off.

Takeru was not coming, and Daisuke could tell by the deadpan expression Hikari was making.

"I'm going to go now, Kari-chan,"

"Mhmm. Good luck, Dai-kun," she gave him a v-sign, and a contrasting smile. The boy returned her smile, then ran back to the field.

Hikari took her camera, remained her focus on taking pictures. By the end of the day, she knew she had no right to be angry at Takeru. She was not at the right place.

_I. Must. Not. Cry._

It just couldn't be helped.


	11. White Flags

**Author's Note:** Thank you for everyone who keeps supporting this story. I hope you all keep reading it and more Mimato fans will emerge now that Digimon Adventure Tri will be out soon. Anyway, I think it's safe to say that chapter 10 to 12 or to 13 is an arc _*hehe*_ so many things can happen in one day, after all. Here's chapter 11!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Eleven  
_White Flags_

Hikari went back to the bleachers to check out the quality of her photos. It was already half-time. She pouted, disappointed at how her photos came to be. A strange, rough pair of hands that smelled of dirt and grass suddenly covered her eyes from behind.

"Dai-kun, it's you," she answered, since he was the only one who liked to do it out of habit. Daisuke took them off and laughed.

"So how are things, Kari-chan?"

"Not good. Most of my photos of you and Ichijouji-senpai are blurry," she answered. "I can't seem to get the right settings. Takeru-kun's good at this stuff,"

"Yeah.. I wonder why he didn't come," he said, taking a seat beside her. "I kinda wanted to go to karaoke with you guys later,"

"We can go out afterwards," she offered. It was best to take her mind off of the blond boy.

Daisuke blushed, trying to figure out what she meant. Is it a date? Or just two friends hanging out? He was well aware of Hikari's feelings for Takeru, even if she didn't admit it._ Gah. It doesn't matter! I'll be with Hikari!_

"O-okay!"

Out of politeness, she smiled. He bid her bye, going back to his team. It wouldn't be so bad hanging out with Daisuke, if he refrained from being so pushy with his feelings for her. But she also didn't want to be the one to break his heart. There was nothing else to do but to tell him the truth.

* * *

Mimi observed the figure on front of her lead her to their destination. Their feet had already reached inner city, and her soles were starting to ache. Yamato had not spoken about this brash move and the purpose behind it, despite her demands.

"My feet are killing me," she cried out. He ignored her, his hand still holding her wrist as they moved through the sea of people. Mimi thought more about earlier. By the look of Sora's face, it was as if Yamato had suddenly thrown her away. But her observations didn't seem to make sense, since Sora had not messaged her about it yet. She took her free hand to reach her phone from her breast pocket, then texted her love-scorned friend. _I hope she's okay.._

"Just a little while," he breathed. But the truth was, he didn't know where they were going, and what to do with Mimi. His plan earlier backfired as soon as his guts started to cartwheel.

She groaned and resisted his pull. They stop walking, and he turns around to meet her glaring eyes. _What's the deal with him.._ Yamato's rude intervention a while ago had made her suspicious of his motives. Why _her_, of all people to take out of the crowd? Why not Sora? _Or why not Taichi, or someone else? _The worst thing that could happen is for her best friend to assume that she and Yamato are smitten with each other.

"I'm sorry," He apologized. She didn't buy it when he said it with a straight face. Their locked eyes tested each other, and for a while, she swam within his blue eyes, looking for an answer. She is interrupted as he closes his eyes. Then opened them again.

"Are you okay?" she asked as she notices his eyes becoming watery.

"Yeah. I'm sorry for dragging you here. I'll leave you here okay." Without even letting her reply he turned his back, his figure dissolving with the crowd.

"What the hell!" Mimi shrieked, unable to control her feelings. No one had heard of her outburst. With her nose held high, she turned her back, looked for a place to freshen up. She ended up going to a mall nearby, and decided to window-shop. She took interest of buying a new phone.

"This is relatively cheap.." she muttered as she suspiciously checked around the shop that sold a surprisingly inexpensive new model of the iPhone.

"Mimi-chan, what are you doing here?" She turned around and saw Koushiro, whom she had just classes with not long ago.

"Kou-kun! Ahh," the sudden encounter made her fidgety, then turned her head to look at something else. "I'm looking for a new phone, as you can see,"

"I see. You wouldn't want to buy from that shop," he said, taking a few steps to move closer to her. He already sensed her being uncomfortable. "Most of the stuff they sell here are the rejected ones,"

"I see.."

"Ahh.. yeah.." he took a step back as he scratched his head. _It's now or never, I guess,_ he thought.

"Say, mind taking a seat?"

* * *

"Let me carry this," offered Taichi, as he already took Sora's extra bag from her arm. She did not contend, her entire being weakening as they walked aimlessly. The silence kept growing between them, despite Taichi's best efforts to break the wall. The setting sun cast an orange light, and Sora's auburn hair, sun-kissed skin, her sad yet vivid face –it was as if she was set aflame, and he burned as he stayed next to her.

Like Sora, he saw what happened earlier with Yamato. He knew what really happened, why Yamato looked for Mimi, and not Sora . _Ishida, you coward.. but ahh.. _even he knew he had no right to accuse Yamato of cowardice.

But Taichi said nothing, and followed where Sora went, making sure he didn't lose sight of her in the crowded streets. Sooner he realized they were heading to the basement café in Tokyo Tower. And above it, was the observatory, where he gave her the hairclip. _Coincidence? _He smiled in irony as he recalled the painful memory.

At the front of the café, she stops, and turns around to look at him for the first time since earlier. "Are you hungry, Tai-kun?"

Taichi was caught off guard with her sudden smile. "Not really. Are you?"

"Hmm.. yeah." They did walk quite a distance, after all.

"Okay. I'll treat you here,"

Sora's heartily laugh rang in his ears, the thought that he finally did something good to her was the most comforting.

"Okay."

* * *

"I'm sorry," blurted out Koushiro as he played with his fingers. He couldn't dare to directly look at Mimi.

"You don't have to be.." she replied, toying with her ice cream. Apparently he took her to the same ice cream shop that Sora frequented. _I guess this is a common place to everyone_.. she thought, taking a spoonful.

"The truth is, I got really scared when I found out about your past," he confessed.

"I can tell, Kou-kun," she said, scooping her ice cream. "You're still avoiding my eyes."

Koushiro could only manage to say another _"sorry"._

"I am kind of hurt, though." She added, focusing on finishing her dessert.

"Why?"

"Because I think you're disgusted with me."

"I'm not.."

"Then what?"

He sighed, now finally meeting her eyes. "It's just that we've been so close after all this time, even when you left.. And then I'll suddenly find something out about you, something as deep as this," he argued. "After all the times we talked, all the chances you could have told me – you still chose not to tell me until everyone else had already known. It's as if I still don't know you that well at all."

"Why are you saying these things? No one really knew 'til I came back," But she already knew where he was going, where his pain was coming from – _but am I really responsible for this pain?_

He leaned back on his chair, feeling embarrassed. But he had to just say it now. "Because I was there for you. I wanted to be there for you. I just thought I could have been _that_ someone,"

Mimi looked down on her cup. It was now her turn to avoid his eyes. She was at loss with words. She didn't know if she should feel guilty for his heartache or be angry at his self-importance.

"Taichi, Sora, and Yamato have each other. When something about the other came up, they'll always be the first ones to know. I only even found out when that Yamato-kun and Sora-chan were already dating when Takeru-kun told me. And I only found out that they broke up from you,"

The brunette ran a hand through her long hair. "What are you trying to say.."

"I didn't mind being one of the last people on earth to find out what's going on among our friends. I'm not intrusive enough to ask, but it felt nice to actually be one of the first people to know things," said Koushiro.

"Apart from Sora-chan and Takeru-chan, I was one of the people who knew things about you the most, and that made me feel special," Koushiro started to scratch his head, dreading to even utter what he had to say next.

"So.. Yamato-kun was the one to find out first, huh.."

"Yeah. He was." She confirmed, now getting uncomfortable of their conversation. Koushiro was being _un_-Koushiro, especially that he was the one doing all the talking right now. Mimi felt bad that he was wearing his heart on his sleeve, and she already knew she wasn't going to take it.

"Yeah. You two are becoming awfully close now,"

"We are." The thought of Yamato, whom she was recently with, added to her stress.

"And you know about Taichi-kun, right?"

"I know, Kou-kun," she said, taking a sip from her glass of water. She then placed it down. It was time to break the ice. "I know what you feel about me, too."

But even now she couldn't really believe it; when all-throughout their conversation, Koushiro kept the same, stoic face.

* * *

_Ahh.. What am I doing.. _Takeru was becoming borderline depressed as he listened to Eric Clapton's _"Layla"_ on repeat. He couldn't help it though, he wasn't a musician but the guitar was just blowing his mind off.

At the same time, he had been obsessively checking his phone for any message from Hikari. After taking an afternoon snack from a street vendor nearby, a two-hour dillydallying around the park, he was now on his way to Leisureland. From the looks of it, Hikari's probably pissed off at him for not keeping his word. But that doesn't matter now, he thought. She didn't need him.

He wondered if he should meet up with his older brother, and get some advice. _What advice.. I already ran away. _It didn't matter. It doesn't matter.

Daisuke was far better in taking care of her. He only wished he was just as good enough to compete.

He wasn't _that _in love with her anyway. _I'm not. What do fourteen-year-olds know about love anyway?_ He kept trying to convince himself he wasn't.

A few minutes after, he got off the train, walked his way to the arcade. Whether it was his peripheral vision or Hikari 'radar', he swore he saw her, and Daisuke in his extra PE clothes, enter a shop nearby.

He takes a few steps nearer, just close enough to validate his sighting. And when Takeru was satisfied, he turned his heels away. Somehow, he was starting to have a fascination with train rides. He didn't have any right to be sad.

* * *

"I'm pretty sure it was nothing, Sora-chan," reassured Taichi for the nth time.

"It could be nothing for now, but trust me, after six months, it'll be something," she lamented, taking a bite from her third slice of cake. "Why are you so cool about it, Tai-kun? Aren't you trying to get Mimi-chan on a date?"

"Ahh.. Yeah, I am," he answered, now unsure for what he really should do with Mimi. "But I know Yamato-kun and Mimi-chan. They're our best friends. They won't do that."

"Whether or not they date, Mi-chan will become someone more important than me in Yamato's life," she said. "I'm no idiot. I knew about Yamato's little crush on Mi-chan back then,"

"You should consider that all of us guys did," Taichi added, hoping it would soothe. He did not know how she found out about that, but it was more important to steer Sora away from her dangerous thoughts. Taichi had already learned from his several misunderstandings with Sora. And most of them boiled down to either his insensitivity or her unresolved insecurities.

And like most of their arguments, she always took him wrongly; and this was no exception.

"Of course you all did," she groaned, now slamming her head on the table. "Even little Takeru-kun did,"

"That was all in the past, though,"

"Said by someone going after Mi-chan right now," she retorted. Taichi groaned out of defeat. He knew her all too well, and she wasn't going to let him win by calming her down.

"So what do you want to do?"

"Nothing. I'm not going to do anything," she leaned back from her seat, her arms crossed.

_And she said she's not stubborn, _he thought. It was obvious that she still wasn't over his best friend.

"Why did you break up with Yamato in the first place?" Having only heard Yamato's side of the story, maybe it was time he should find out Sora's. She glanced at him, then down at her half-eaten cake.

"I don't really know," she muttered, now scooping the icing. She made a sad smile. "It didn't feel right anymore."

"Why so?"

"Why are you suddenly interested, Tai-kun? Are you trying to win me back right now?" she asked out of amusement.

_What the hell_, he almost shouted, slightly offended from her little joke. He took a heavy breath to regain his temper before it gets the best of him. "No, I'm not. I just want to know."

"It just didn't feel right anymore. It wasn't the same.. there were too many misunderstandings, too many fights," she lamented. "It came to the point we started to hurt each other.. because there were just _too many of everything_."

Though he couldn't understand, it was similar to Yamato's story after all. _I guess Yamato had already seen it coming then_, thought Taichi. "Too much love?"

Oh, did she and Yamato love each other a lot, all right. But for three years of having known each other, neither of them could handle each other's monsters.

She smirked. "We loved so much that we didn't know how to be friends."


	12. Restless

**Author's Note:** I'd like to thank _**Scripturiens **_for sharing bountiful insight about this story. I really do think Yamato and Mimi are not as incompatible as what most people say - and it infuriates me when people say that (lol). Yamato and Mimi would have had the chance to be together if they were given the chance to interact. An honest and firm person like Mimi is exactly what Yamato needs - not the sort of indecisive and uncertain person that Sora is, because Yamato has those tendencies as well.

I have to dedicate this Mimato-only chapter to my very thorough reviewers. I'm really grateful of my reviewers, especially those who spend their time to help and improve my writing. Because damn, this fandom needs more high-quality stories and I'm trying to make my writing better. I sadly don't have much enough time to recheck them thoroughly, but oh well. I hope it remains enjoyable DDD:

Anyway, here's chapter twelve!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Twelve  
_Restless_

Nighttime had befallen Tokyo, and the air turned strangely humid. Mimi found it hard to believe that everything was still in place, especially after Koushiro's self-admitted rejection. What bothered her was that he did not even give out a proper confession, like most guys would.

"_I like you, and I know you don't feel the same.", he says, _thought Mimi.

Although it was true, she wished he didn't feel so defeated. He wasn't hoping for her. If he told her otherwise, if he told her he was going to try – _maybe.. just maybe.._

She decided to go to the pier, hoping to clear off her mind before her parents smother their love on her. It turned out that she wasn't alone, as she caught a silhouette of a man leaning over the fence. She walked closer, trying to paint a face of the figure. It was pitched dark in the area, and only got to recognize him as she caught a hint of yellow on his hair.

Yamato heard her footsteps, and turned his head to see her.

"Mimi," he greeted, not really surprised to see her. He felt quite grateful that he wasn't going to be alone tonight.

"Yamato-kun," she sighed out of relief, and approached him. He was looking straight at the ocean, as the color of the bridge had just turned purple. She leaned in, trying to study his face in the dark.

"I'm sorry about earlier."

"Mhmm.. what was that all about anyway?"

"I was supposed to talk to Sora."

"I see.. you were going to try to make up with her?"

"Yeah.."

"What held you back?"

"_A gut feeling."_

"Tch. You're such a coward," said Mimi. She had heard him say the same excuse before. "You should have fought for her,"

"Initially that was the plan," groaned Yamato as he leaned against the rail. He became aware that this certain spot had become his and Mimi's spot. "But when I saw her, it just didn't feel right."

The brunette snorted, not liking what she was hearing, and much more confident that he deserved what Sora did to him. "You know, hearing you say that tells me that you didn't really love her as you say,"

He was suddenly taken aback, checking if she really told him that. _Huh? What just happened?_ Did Mimi just really say that to him? _How dare she?_ How can she know anything about him and Sora? Or how much he had loved her? _What the hell is with this brat! _He was realizing that it was a mistake to even assume she could help him.

He shot her a look, with danger in his eyes. "Okay Tachikawa, you're way out of line,"

"And you aren't?" she scoffed, tilting her head away from his direction. "Seriously, you've made us under everyone's impression that I'm your new lover. Me, Sora's best friend,"

"How did you even manage to jump into that kind of conclusion?" he retorted, astonished at her vanity. _Seriously.. why did I even think.._

"A lot of people saw," she explained, becoming more frustrated. If there was anything she feared more, it was endangering her friendship with Sora. "But I don't care what they think. I care what Sora-chan would think after you pulled off that stunt,"

"Not everything has to be about you, Tachikawa," he snapped. "Why did I even bother talking to you, you only care about what you feel,"

Before he could turn his head away, her palm already met his cheek.

"How dare you say that.." she started to sob. Yamato groaned out of frustration as he rubbed his reddening cheek. He checked the area and hoped for no sight of a passerby.

_Even Mimi will not understand,_ he thought. He remembered Sora again, wondering if he could have done something else to not end up like _this_. He now had no one else, assured no one could ever love him the way she did. _If Sora couldn't, then no one else can._ He suddenly found himself amused of the waves, ebbing and flowing against the stoned shore.

For five minutes they did not talk, until Mimi was silenced from her crying. In a turn of surprise, she felt shameful.

"I'm sorry, Yamato-kun," she apologized as she took him by his arm. What he said earlier did hold truth. She was more worried about her status than his feelings.

"I'm sorry for slapping you," she added. He stiffened from the hug, thinking if he should pull away.

"Ahh. I'm sorry too," he apologized, and patted her head. "An apology won't work for that slap though. You owe me ice cream."

"Okay." She immediately agreed.

He chuckled. "I'm just joking."

"I know you love Sora-chan," she muffled. "I'm sorry for saying such things. I don't know how much pain you're feeling right now, but I know it's a lot."

"Ahhh.." he then pulled away from her, becoming uneasy of the growing romantic atmosphere between them. Mimi kept talking, apologizing for what she did, and not noticing he was already stripping down to his underclothes until he jumped over the bar.

"What are you trying to do?!" she said, pulling his arm to get him back to the other side.

"Mimi, let me go, _it's not what you think it is,_"

"What the hell are you trying to do, Ishida? Are you already committing your death wish or what?!" she kept her grip tighter around his arm.

"You idiot, I'm not, I just want to take a swim,"

"In your clothes? In this filthy body of water? Are you joking?! You think I'm a fool?!"

He did not like how loud she was. "I'm not joking. And yes, I think you are a fool."

"You're insane! Come on, just get back here, will you," but before she could convince him, he had already strained away from her and went in to the water.

"Oh my God! Yamato!" Only leaving his school bag and coat, she picked them up and panicked even more, wondering if she should get some help from nearby vessel or yacht owners. _Should I call the police?! The navy?!_

"Yamato! Oh my – oh what should I do, should I go in?!"

A few seconds without any sign of a breathing Yamato, Mimi started to cry. _Oh my God, it's no good!_ She then frantically opened her coat, until she was only wearing her undershirt and boyshorts.

"Gah! Ishida! If I find you alive, I will kill you myself!" she yelled to the waters, and then went in. Just as she was already in the air, Yamato had risen with a heavy breath.

"Don't panic, you—what are you doing?!" Mimi had already dipped in the water, much to his surprise. He grumbled, as he saw her school uniform hang on the fence. He felt guilty.

"Ishida!" exclaimed Mimi, as she animatedly got up to the surface. "What is the matter with you?!"

She started to chase him, grabbing for his head, hoping to drown him herself. He felt her grab his hair and he instantly swam away.

"I told you not to worry!" he shouted. He swam back for land, and Mimi followed. He sat on the short stairway that connected to the pier.

"How would I know," she panted, taking his hands as he helped her get out of the sea. "Whom in their right minds would take a swim here?!"

As soon as her feet touched the ground, he threw her clothes to her, as well as his coat. She air-dried herself for a while before putting her clothes back on, and then she put on Yamato's coat over her shoulders to keep herself from shivering. She turned around to look at him, his undershirt, boxers, and hair still damped. But there were more important things than him being slightly see-through.

"Yamato-kun,"

"Mimi,"

Silence fell between them again. He started to take his clothes and put them on piece by piece.

"You really weren't going for a swim, weren't you?" she muttered, but audible enough for him to hear. He did his trousers, and just stared at her. She was right.

"I wanted to know if I will resurface or not."

She took a deep breath, looked away from him, hoping he wouldn't see her tears. "Took you a long time to come out.."

"Yeah.." he would have apologized, but he knew it wouldn't mean anything.

_You idiot._ She scolded in her mind. She walked towards him, slowly. Fear started to grow inside her, having been reminded of those lost friends she had, all those Digimon friends whom had died before her, had scarred her for life. They stared at each other for a while. She studied his eyes, looking for answers to questions she couldn't ask out loud. _Oh Sora.. _she thought. Sora, _oh dear Sora_, had no idea.

He was still the same lonely boy she knew back then, and what could have happened tonight, if she weren't here with him now – _no.. no. Not Yamato.. no.. please, no._

Whatever it was that was going inside Yamato's mind and heart, she was glad she found him tonight. Her eyes then caught a silvery piece that marked beneath his white polo shirt. She saw a familiar trinket that she remembered giving it to him.

_What did he mean he wanted to know he will resurface.. _thought Mimi. She took him by his shirt, her palms balling into fists. Mimi wanted to be angry, but couldn't. She embraced him, forcing her tears back as she hid her face on his damp shirt. "But at least you did.."

This time, he returned her gesture, and without her noticing, he silently wept on her shoulder.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Oh yeah, anyone interested in a Sorato break-up fanmix? I made one and it's posted on my profile. Hahaha. I know things just got a bit darker but I wanted to keep them in character. I'm not heading off to a tragic/angsty road, but I really think this felt natural, especially among emotional teens like Yamato.

I do think, despite a much happier and active Yamato in post-Digiworld adventure, Yamato still has some of his extremes especially when he's under stress or when he's emotionally weak. Since chapter one Yamato has been burdened by his rocky relationship with Sora, and I think what he did in this chapter is when he reaches his own limit. I'd like to think that despite the unnatural togetherness of Sora and Yamato - they really did love each other, and did think of each other as their "only one". Digimon canon forced that in my face anyway X(

I hope the transition from a 'broken' Yamato to a 'healing' Yamato will be as natural as it goes.

As for Mimi's character development in the story, her issues do not make her entirely weak, unlike Yamato. Mimi's the kind who will go head-on and immediately resort to a fix, whether it's a good or bad one; still, that doesn't mean her own issues did not leave a lingering impact on her.

Anyway, the next chapter(s) will hopefully explain more of this. To be honest, I don't really have much of a fully-detailed plan for this story and I have to say, writing everyone in their teens (especially those in their late ones) are quite challenging.


	13. Friends and Lovers

**Author's Note: ** To my dear reviewer _**Digi Yo,**_ I agree with you 100%! When I was a kid, I shipped Mimato and Taiora. Though I didn't really read onto Taiora as much as I did with Mimato (because Taiora was just so obviously there D:). But writing Salad Days had made me look more into Taichi and Sora as characters and as a pair (friendship-wise, and romantic-wise). While Mimato is my first, Taiora is just undeniably the couple that had to become canon (but didn't).They just perfectly fit the glove. This chapter has a really intense (or so my partner-slash-betareader says) Taiora moment and I hope you and the rest of the readers like it!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Thirteen  
_Friends and Lovers_

"I'm scared of heights." said Sora as she leaned on the glass. They were at the top of the observatory, and below them was neon-lit Tokyo. Back then, flying at the back of Birdramon made her conquer this ages-long fear; but now, away from the fantasy of a world she once knew, reality crept back in as soon as they returned in their own world.

"But I like going here. Makes me feel like I'm still me.. As if I have complete control of my own world.. haha. Though, I don't know if you get that."

"Don't think too much. It's bad for you." Taichi placed a hand on her shoulder, and he immediately felt her tense body relax. She looked over her shoulder and smiled.

"Thanks for coming with me."

"Anytime."'

She bit her lip, then touched the hand that held her. "Why do you like Mimi-chan?"

"Ummm. What's not to like about her?" he cautiously answered. Although Sora still had that effect over him, he knew that this new Mimi had that potential to get Sora out of his system completely– if only he'd make his move.

"I mean.. what made you go after her?"

"I don't really know," he answered. He buried his hands in his pockets. "She seemed to have pretty got it altogether.. and she's fun to be around,"

What else did he like about Mimi, other than her modelesque face and physique? Taichi pondered for a while as he stared down at the city. Sora stared at him intently, anticipating for his reply.

"I don't really know, Sora-chan," he repeated. He remembered Mimi's smile, eyes, face, her habit of making lots of hand gestures, her nasty quirk of staring people directly in the eyes; and then her little secret. She was not as innocent as she was back then now – but somehow, in his eyes, she still was the same Tachikawa Mimi he knew. He found all of it, very much attractive. "I like her a lot."

The ginger looked away and looked at the ceiling. "I wonder if I really did love Yamato-kun,"

"You did, Sora-chan."

"Did I? Or did I just do that because.." She did not continue. Sora wondered if what most people had assumed was true – if what Yamato had been accusing her of – was true. Back then, it did not feel like it at all. _Now, it does. _A minute had passed by, and an anxious Taichi had to speak up.

"Because of what, Sora-chan?"

"Because of you."

Taichi instinctively moved away, perplexed. Was Sora being for real? "Why are you saying this right now?"

The redhead shrugged, not caring how blunt she was being. "I don't know, I'm just saying out loud what my mind thinks,"

"Well don't," he scolded. He somehow got a clue where this was going, and no way was he about to get swayed by it. _Just. No. _"I'm getting the impression that you're about throw yourself at any guy who'd give you the affection you're looking for."

He hit right at home, but Taichi wasn't just any other guy. He was her first friend; the childhood best friend; first love; the summer fling; the one that put her to the friend zone; the one that got away. To her, he had a lot of titles and names; but just not _her_ lover.

Sora bent her head down even more, almost bowing. She tried to hide her face with her, not wanting for him to see how upset he had made her with his words.

* * *

Mimi felt a bit lightheaded as she and Yamato looked for a place to eat. Having to return downtown was as if rediscovering civilization. It was eight in the evening.

"Mimi," he suddenly grabbed her arm.

"What is it?" her vision was getting blurry, and all the city lights were blinding her. He pointed to a ramen stall. She tried her best to catch up with whatever he was being suspicious about. _Maybe we're going to eat there?_

"Is that my brother?" he dragged her along they walked closer to the stall. As they got nearer, Mimi had finally seen a better image of what her companion was pointing to. It was definitely Takeru, eating alone.

And so the two went in, and invaded Takeru's solitary space, making loud noises of fast footsteps and pulling chairs. It had shocked Takeru enough to make him think he was going to get robbed like in the movies.

"What the hell, aniki," Takeru sighed out of relief as he saw two very familiar faces, and not what his imagination had suggested. But his relief had already been replaced with curiosity; he had already noticed that their hairs were both damped, and Mimi's face was unusually bare and free of pink pigment. He immediately shot 'the' look at Yamato.

"It's already late. Why are you here?" asked Yamato. Mimi sat beside him and immediately ordered food for both of them.

"I should be asking," replied Takeru, trying to match his brother's cool tone. "Why are _you two_ together?"

"None of your business," replied the older brother, aware that Takeru is on his detective mode.

Takeru knew he wasn't going to get any answer from him, and so he turned to Mimi. She had been unusually quiet. "Mi-chan, are you and aniki dating?"

Mimi had almost spit out her noodles. "No, no, no, Takeru-kun. What gave you that idea?!" she scolded. Yamato just groaned at Takeru's accusation, already getting tired of being misinterpreted. He now understood where Mimi was coming from earlier, and why she got angry for suddenly taking her out on front of everyone.

"I don't know, it's just that you two weren't really that close," said Takeru, crossing his arms. Even now he still found the thought of his brother and Mimi together fascinated him. It was an unspoken and forbidden fantasy that he had since he was a child.

"Well we are now," defended Yamato, as he put his hand on top of Mimi's head and patted her like a daughter.

"And it's perfectly normal for us to hang out," added Mimi as she slapped Yamato's hand from her hair. She took another sip from her soup, now slightly getting her energy back.

The youngest of them held his chuckle. He was finding them more amusing to watch as the time passed by. Takeru started to imagine several instances that they might end up together.

"Yeah sure, but why are you two wet?" asked Takeru, pointing at their drenched locks. The pair looked at each other, hoping that the other would do the explanation for them. Mimi eventually won. And so Yamato told the whole story, from late afternoon to early nighttime. Mimi had grown uneasy as he came nearer to the part they got wet.

"And you two are wet _because_..?" pried Takeru, now more curious than ever of what happened. All sorts of things started to happen inside Takeru's mind. Did the two of them had gone for a swim together? Or did it start to rain in some parts of Tokyo while they were out earlier? Did they play with water guns or something? _No.. that's stupid.. _Or what really made sense to him the most was.. _Could it be.. strawberry time?_

The suspense was ever growing stronger, and Mimi could no longer face Takeru. She didn't have the guts to tell him that his older brother just attempted suicide.

"I'll just go to the restroom," not taking it any longer, she stood up and excused herself.

The younger blond now turned to his brother, with a more serious expression on his face. "Please tell me the truth, aniki."

"I am, Takeru."

"So you and Mimi-chan.." he paused.

"We're not. Don't worry, if we do, you'll be the first to know."

The younger blond blinked a few times, surprised. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah."

"So you're really open to the idea of dating Mimi-chan now?"

"No. I only meant that whatever happens to me, you'll be the first to find out."

"But you just said.. as if you and Mimi-chan.."

"Nope."

Takeru grunted, feeling confused and defeated as he leaned back on his seat. He could only hope for the genuineness, of whatever that was going on between Mimi and his brother.

"So.. why are you two wet?" he wasn't going to let his brother get away with it; not until his own mind be put to rest.

"Well.." Yamato finally picked up his chopsticks, broke them off and stirred his bowl. He looked at his brother, and gave a reassuring smile that confused Takeru more. "Let's just say that Mimi saved my life today."

Takeru arched his brow, not liking the sound of it; but questioned no further as he sighted Mimi coming back from the girls' lavatory.

* * *

The remainder of the night was anything but comfortable. Taichi followed Sora from behind as they were about to go home. Confused with Sora's words earlier, he was more motivated to move on from her and start anew. Whatever it was that Sora wanted from him this time, it wasn't for the best. _I know better now._ But that did not mean he would stop being her friend. She's always going to be someone important to him.

"Sora-chan,"

"Hmm?"

"You'll be okay."

She stopped her tracks, adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder and fully turned to him. How can he say she'll be okay so carelessly? How can she be okay when she had already given everything – _and now I'm left with nothing.._

"Can I be okay? Really? _Yamato left me_, and you're going after Mimi – so how can I be okay with that?" The fact that she couldn't even say it all to Mimi made her feel worse. But she'd rather get herself hurt than put her own best friend through it.

Sora breathed and looked at the stars, trying to push back her tears. "How do you want me to be okay? I am not getting the love I deserve – I did all I could with him – all – b-but, see? Where did it all end up?"

"You said you love me as unconditional as you have said back then – but what now? Where is it? You didn't even – you didn't even fight for me, or tried to.. and now you – you're giving my best friend a shot. God," she put a palm over her face, hoping he wouldn't see the expression she was making. "God.. Why am I feeling this if I was already enough and as good as you all say?"

It did not take her long to finally let her guard down and cry. With a bit of hesitation, Taichi allowed himself to comfort the crying ginger in his arms. He heard her say _'unfair'_ a couple of times. She freely wept, unconsciously taking advantage of his presence. This was what she needed. She yearned for a pair of welcoming arms. Anyone who'd make her feel she was already enough.

"P-please.." she muffled on his shirt. "Don't leave.."

He took her by her arms and pulled Sora away, his hands resting on her small shoulders. He stared at her with sad eyes. Had Taichi not known better, he would not have second thoughts to wipe her tears away. It was tempting, but not tempting enough. He couldn't believe he was about to back out from her again; even if it was the right thing to do this time.

She's always going to be someone important to him.

_But right now_, Sora didn't need him, or anyone else. "I'm sorry."

* * *

"No, no, I don't hate Daisuke-kun. We're friends," corrected Takeru as he pointed his chopsticks at Mimi. "I just don't like him and Hikari-chan together,"

"It doesn't really make much of a difference," argued Mimi. She flipped her dampened hair, trying to look all-knowing. "How long has this been going? I'm pretty sure things are getting bitter between you and Daisuke-kun. It's perfectly normal. Competition is normal, my dear Takeru-kun,"

"But I don't, at all!" resisted the blond. "It's just that I wish Daisuke-kun didn't have feelings for her!"

Whether or not Takeru held bitterness in him, it didn't fail to remind Yamato of the time he and Taichi had gone sour because of Sora. The two continued their argument as Yamato remained at loss with his memories, until Takeru turned to him.

"What do you think, aniki?"

"Hmm?"

"I don't hate Daisuke-kun,"

"I'm sure you don't,"

"Ha! See, Mi-chan?"

"You don't, because you don't have the right to hate him," added Yamato. "At this point, neither of you own Hikari."

"Good point, Ishida," winked Mimi as she turned to a resentful Takeru. "Say, why don't you just tell your feelings about Hikari to Daisuke-kun? I'm sure he'll understand. And who knows, he might pave his way,"

"No.." replied Takeru. He ran a hand through his hair and breathed heavily. "He's not like that. I'm actually kind of scared that his feelings for Hikari-chan are stronger than mine."

Mimi rolled her eyes, trying to act oblivious as she asked, "Who does Kari-chan like, though?"

"I don't know."

And Yamato swore his brother right now reminded him of Taichi.

The brunette was dumbfounded that Takeru didn't even take a second to think about it. It was always in Takeru's nature to be non-assuming despite his incredibly optimistic personality. _Poor Kari-chan._ "You're an idiot sometimes."

It took them half an hour of another long conversation to leave the place. They were just few blocks away from the train station, and Takeru had kept on talking as he led the two of them. The night seemed to have cooled, and Mimi could feel her nose getting itchy and runny.

"You okay?" Yamato turned to her, as he had already gone bored of Takeru's repetitive storytelling and obsessive picking of the minor details of his "encounter" with Hikari and Daisuke. Yamato had already shared his opinion and had given his best advice earlier, but he knew his younger brother would do the exact opposite.

"No, not really," sniffled Mimi, rubbing her nose. "I wonder how many sorts of bacteria were there in that bay,"

"Ehh.. I told you not to come," excused Yamato. She shot him a look.

"What would have happened if I weren't there, Yamato-kun?" she hissed, hoping Takeru won't hear their conversation. "Your lanky-built body will stay afloat on the murky waters of Tokyo Bay and I would be the prime suspect of alleged murder,"

He couldn't help but chuckle at her remark. "That'll be fascinating, won't it be? Your second trip to the police station. This time, in Japan."

"You got into the police station, Mi-chan?!" she heard Takeru exclaim as he withdrew a few steps back to meet their speed.

"Ehh.. It's a long story," which truly it was, and Mimi felt obliged to come up with a good lie to follow it.

"How?" Knowing how persistent Takeru will be,

Yamato immediately spoke up. Mimi will never be able to pull off a lie anyway. "She accidentally ran through her neighbor's pet while driving around without her license,"

The younger blond squinted his eyes at the brunette, doubtful. "You never told me that."

Mimi had to ride with the whole conversation as Takeru kept asking her questions until reaching the train station. The two bid goodbye from the middle schooler, and disappeared from their sight. Another blanket of silence fell.

They started to walk together, as they both lived in the same district. Yamato did not know how to face Mimi after having to witness his _little_ episode. He glanced at her, catching her glance at him.

She turned once more to look at him, now with a solemn expression in her face. Yamato took the hint that she still was unsatisfied about earlier. He sighed and placed his hand on her head.

"I'm sorry."

Mimi looked up at the night sky. She had an idea why Yamato had done that, but even so, she could not understand. "It's because of Sora, isn't it.."

He didn't reply, and she took his silence as a yes. She reprocessed all of the events of today, trying to make sense out of everything. Mimi wanted to point fingers, blame someone – _blame Sora_ – but couldn't. It was evident to her that her best friend and the man beside her still love each other, _but I guess love is just not enough._

"I'm guessing this is the first time?" she asked, trying to keep the conversation casual.

She heard him breathe deeply, as if already hesitant to answer her. "It wasn't.."

"I see.." she muttered.

"The first time was during the first few days of divorce."

"Hmm."

"I never really went with my efforts a hundred percent. I couldn't." Most of the attempts he made were half-heartedly done, despite the fact that he toyed with the idea of taking his own life ever since he was a child.

"I see.."

She was repeating her answers. Yamato noticed her quiet and unable to speak out like she used to. "I'm sorry."

Mimi sighed, took him by the hand as they walked along the neighborhood. They were already just two blocks away from her street. She gripped his hand tightly, not looking at him. She wasn't sure if she was in the place to say it, but she felt that she had to.

"Please don't do it again."

And it surprised him that she cared that much. "I won't."

"Promise?"

He reassuringly gripped her hand back before releasing it. "Mhmm."

"So.." she cleared her throat, hoping to lighten up the mood. "Where have you gone off to this afternoon?"

Mimi eventually found out that Yamato went straight to the bar he frequented, and had recently discovered a new and decent local band apart from his own – _or so he says_. They started to talk about his new idea of a song, and judging from his description, it was obviously about his breakup.

When they reached Mimi's doorstep, they bid goodbye and good night. He instantly heard Mr. and Mrs. Tachikawa's voices as they coo Mimi inside and ask her why she was all filthy.

He turned around, about to go home. The weightlessness in his chest suddenly felt heavier, and his heartbeat had sped up to a normal rate. He suddenly felt his vital signs working again. The next thing Yamato knew was that he was still alive. _I can live –_ with or without Sora.


	14. Saturday Morning

**Author's Note: **I don't own Digimon, and I'm very very excited for Adventure Tri. Anyway, things are going to become a bit lighter from this point on. I'd like to think this story is more of a slice-of-life. Hehe.

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Fourteen  
_Saturday Morning_

Memories from earlier this week had eventually died into the recesses of his mind, coming to the point he had already forgotten when the weekend came – but that did not mean he was looking forward for video game night over Taichi's later.

Koushiro sat back up from his seat as he stared at his cellphone screen. It did not take him that long to reply; he would not want his friend to feel as if he was ignoring him. Shortly, Taichi replied.

_That's great! See ya later~~ don't forget to bring batteries!_

How could he ever deny Taichi? They'd been friends ever since. Absentmindedly clicking stuff with his laptop, he began wondering if Taichi had already formally confessed to Mimi. _Taichi will not be a bad lover_, presumed Koushiro. And for sure, it was going to depend on Mimi, _right?_

As for Mimi – she had been trying to reach out to him since _that day_, but he couldn't pretend his way with her. He pushed himself away from his desk, sighing. He looked up at the ceiling, not liking that his eyes were starting to sting again. _I thought I did damage control._

"Well, this is surprisingly hard and heavy in the chest, Tentomon.." he called out, much aware he was unaccompanied in his room. Just a few moments of idleness Koushiro went back to focus on his crammed browser.

_If they do, then I hope things will go well._

After a few more clicks, he smiled to himself after finding out that his future was secured; his scholarship grant for college had finally been approved. _Just one more year of _this. High school was such a bitch.

Taichi obsessively combed his bushy hair as he waited outside the train station. He had finally managed to ask Mimi out with him. And, according to his very reliable best friend Ishida Yamato, Mimi was not a choosy date as long as she gets to eat the food she wants. _Piece of cake – _because he saved up his entire allowance for the past week – all for _this_.

It had been a while since he went out on a legitimate date; the very first one was with a random _gyaru _whom Yamato and Koushiro picked for him; the second was a bimbo who was two-or-three years older than him, thanks to another dare from his friends; he had lost count since then, but this was definitely a first in a long time.

"_Mi-chan," he called out. Mimi turned around, saw that he was out of breath, having chased her from the fifth floor to the school gate. If not for the provoking Yamato, Taichi would not have had this spontaneous marathon._

"_Taichi-kun.." she instantly felt uneasy, as Sora was just beside her. "What are you doing here?"_

_Panting and yearning for a gallon of water, Taichi wasted no time and said what he had to. Mimi seems to know already, after all. "I like you. I'm not asking you to like me back, but if you want to try, meet me on Saturday, Rinkai Station."_

_Before he knew it, he fell onto his knees, trying to catch his breath – and Mimi only told him, "I'll think about it."_

Mimi messaged him the same night; after a few of her provisos, she eventually agreed. Taichi sighed as he took out his phone to message Yamato.

_Man, I'm fucking scared._

He never had problems interacting with girls, but unlike Sora and the rest of the females he knew, Mimi was absolutely intimidating. It seemed that he wasn't the only one who thought so.

_Ha ha. I know. Good luck._

_Tch, _thought Taichi, as he frowned down to his phone._ Well that didn't help!_

Fifteen minutes after their call-time, the brunette had arrived, in her white and powder blue dress that fell just above her knees, and yellow kitten heels. Taichi noticed she was also wearing a quaint boat hat with a blue ribbon on it. _Mimi and hats._

"H-hi!" greeted Taichi as he went to hug her. She put a palm on front of her, preventing him to come any closer.

"Tai-kun," scolded Mimi. "No skinship, remember?!" It was one of her provisos.

The boy rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. "What the heck, we always hug when we meet each other!"

"But this is a _date_, Yagami,"

"Yeah, but we're friends… so it doesn't make much difference,"

"No! You're just trying to get into my undies, this is exactly what this is all about!"

_Right._ After days of glorifying the new and improved Tachikawa Mimi, he forgot about the part that she can be really, _annoyingly _full of herself. "You think I'm so in to you!"

Mimi tilted her head to his side, frowned even more by his statement. They were arguing, and this was the first time she'd be out with Taichi alone. _And here I thought Yamato-kun and I couldn't last a conversation._

She was masking her nervousness, as this was the first time she'd go out on a date – with a friend – _with a friend whom is akin to being my brother_ – with the stubborn and jolly man Taichi.

_Damn, he looks so good in those shorts._ And it felt rather weird to think of Taichi was attractive – in any way. She crossed her arms, ignoring that he was also wearing the shoes she gave to him. "Hmp. Then I guess I'm going to leave,"

Taichi burst out of laughter. "Okay, okay. Sorry, Mi," He reached out to grab her arm. She didn't mind his touch this time, and let him lead the way.

"Where are you taking me anyway?" she asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

* * *

He struck the strings of his guitar, as if an experiment. With his guitar pick, Yamato had been testing the chords the whole morning, and his bandmates had grown impatient.

"Ishida, just get over with it, I'm sure we can pull something off," said Hiroyuki. He had been practicing his drumming and eventually got bored.

"Yeah, Yama-kun. The rental here's expensive, must you know," agreed Shinji. He was the one who rented the studio for today's practice – and they pretty much only had two hours left.

"No, I have something in my mind, and I'm going to make sure I get it out with this damn guitar," answered Yamato, as he obsessively picked his guitar.

"What are you looking for anyway? Maybe I can help," Keisuke picked up the piece of paper near Yamato.

'_She's the type of girl who makes love – hurts,' _Keisuke silently read. He bit his lip, not wanting to let out his laughter. "Let's just go unplugged with this, Ishida,"

For a long time, the blond glared at him. "No."

"Why not? This is a love song! A break-up song, specifically!" Upon hearing it was a love song, the rest of the band huddled around the faux-hawked guitarist to read Yamato's lyrics.

"I fucking well know what it is, Keisuke," replied Yamato matter-of-factly.

"Don't tell me you still want to sound loud and angry with this," warned his drummer as he held the piece of paper.

"Yes, I want to." said Yamato. _Okay, but maybe not too angry,_ he told himself.

Shinji groaned and went back to his corner of the room, not wanting to deal any of Yamato's baggage.

"Just leave him, you know he becomes a fucking lunatic at times like this," whispered Keisuke to Hiroyuki. Yamato glared at them like he was about to devour them.

"Ugh, but dammit man, did you read those lyrics?" hissed Hiroyuki to his fellow bandmate. "It said, _'I'd rather be in love than dead, but not with her,'_"

When it came to songs about Sora, Yamato had the bad habit to turn into either a mushy and cheesy lyricist or a foul-mouthed bard. This time, he managed to become both. Yamato rolled his eyes, ignoring the complaints of his bandmates. He needed to make his song worthy of a single, catchy enough for Sora to hear on the radio and probably this song will guilt-trip her – _beep beep— _

Frustrated, Yamato dug his hand in his pocket to get his phone. Two messages, both from Taichi and Mimi.

_Mimi's too pretty. I can't do this, man._

Then he opened Mimi's.

_I'm regretting that I have approved to this. This feels so incest, Ishida! (;;_;;)_

Yamato let out a snicker, now getting interested how their date will go. He realized it felt rather nice to get distracted by other people's problems; he's been dead tired and beaten trying so hard to fix his own. Not to mention, Sora had not even acknowledged his presence at their lunch table. Like, _what the fuck_, shouldn't he be the one ignoring her? He was trying his best to stay in good terms with the ginger, but she kept acting like he was the one that broke up with her.

Now that he was single,_ no one can judge me if I go with Mimi later,_ he thought. And it was absolutely getting childish, he told himself. During his evening ritual last night, he had realized that Mimi has very much become a person for keeps; like most of his newly-found deep friendships, he relied on her. The fact that both of them technically saw each other in their undergarments was just – _okay, maybe I shouldn't think about that _– the point is, they're really close now.

_Ha ha ha! You better tell me how it goes. So.. Umm.. wanna meet later?_

Taichi won't be at home 'til evening anyway, so he might as well spend the afternoon with Mimi.

_But I don't know how long this date will go!_

_It'll be over before you even get to say 'I love you' to him. Taichi doesn't ditch football practice._

_So he's going to leave me later eventually?! Ughh.. _ okay. Pick me up then! Don't be late or I will kill you 3_

And so it was set. He wouldn't have to worry killing his free time in the afternoon later. Now, if only he could get this song right.

* * *

Mimi had to give Taichi the credit for taking her somewhere that wasn't as boring as the places where Sora and Jyou took her. They were at the Tokyo Sea Life aquarium, and much had changed since the last time she had been here. It was still as large as it was before, but it looked cleaner and fancier now. The aquarium was more colorful too.

She wasn't as nervous around Taichi as she was days ago though, thanks to Sora's.. _blessing_.

_They were heading for the new cat café downtown, meeting up with Hikari and Inoue Miyako. In silence, she waited for the redhead's reaction. Sora was a few feet on front of her, and none of her behavior or facial expressions seemed to give anything away. Fearing Sora might get angry or sad, Mimi braced herself for the worse. Mimi skipped her way to catch up with her best friend._

"_God, what has gotten into Tai-kun," she exclaimed nervously. "Seriously, he's being weirder and weir-"_

"_Mi-chan," the ginger cut her off, and the brunette was surprised to see her smiling. "You should give Taichi-kun a chance,"_

_What? Is Sora being Taichi's wingman?! The brunette thought. The ginger chuckled at Mimi's gaping mouth and scrunched brows. "Oh come on, Mimi! Taichi-kun's been wanting to get you on a date for weeks now!"_

"_Are you okay, Sora-chan?" Mimi asked, putting a palm over Sora's forehead._

"_I am," chuckled Sora as she put down Mimi's hand to her side. They continue to walk as they talk about their male friend._

"_But It's Taichi-kun," debated Mimi. She ran a hand through her long hair. "He's like a brother to me,"_

_Sora bit her lip and looked up. "Well.. if you don't want to, you can decline,"_

"_But Sora-chan. It's Taichi-kun. I'm feeling a whole lot awful.." she drifted. She was becoming anxious again, tempted to take the single leftover cigarette from her wallet._

"_And you know.. What about Kou-kun?!" She needed her sugar, immediately._

_Sora frowned, remembering Mimi's story. "Ehh.. it seems that he has no plans in pursuing his feelings for you."_

She snapped out of her mental train when Taichi poked her shoulder.

"Haha, look Mi, that looks like a Dolphmon," he pointed at the Digimon-like creature that bore its battle scars. The dolphin was set apart from the pod of dolphins that swam in the same direction. "It seems like it was rescued,"

Mimi stared at the creature, as if trying telepathy. She turned her head to look at Taichi, who was leaning very closely against the glass.

"Do you miss Agumon?"

The question startled him. _Boy,_ he did not see that coming. He grinned. "Yeah, I do. But I'm sure we'd meet again,"

She smiled at his optimism; getting distracted from her nostalgic feelings for Palmon. "Maybe we can ask Kou-kun to open the gate for us or something," she suggested.

"Nah, we kept trying to open it two years ago, but somehow the gate doesn't budge anymore," he replied. He pulled himself away from the glass and faced the girl. His cheeks turned pink, still uncomfortable with the fact that the entire set-up was a date. Whatever what was happening, he had to keep the conversation flowing – at least that's was one of Yamato's essential pointers to him. "Do you still have your Digivice?"

"Yeah. I hid it somewhere," answered Mimi. They start to walk, following the pathway. If she was in anyway attracted to Taichi, she would have enjoyed this date. Surprisingly, he turned out to be far gentlemanly than she expected, even fetching her a bottle of water when she got thirsty.

He glanced at the very feminine figure beside him. It had already been hours and he still felt jumpy. He did not want to screw up this chance, but Mimi just seemed to be too good for him. She was more composed and casual than he was, _and she probably notices, _he thought. With a sigh, Taichi looked away, facing forward.

His eyes widened at the sight of his sister being accompanied by two familiar boys he had a love-hate relationship with.

"Mimi!" he hissed, hiding himself behind her back. They were about five yards away from the three.

"Wha-what is it?!" she exclaimed as well, wanting to find out what the fuss was all about. The boy behind him pointed to the three kids who were reading the information plaque for deepwater stingrays.

"Oh!" Mimi's frown turned into a grin. "It's Kari-chan! With Dai-kun and Takeru-kun," she added. Taichi scowled at the mention of the boys.

_Perfect timing! _thought Mimi. "Let's go wi—"

"No!" hissed Taichi, already in stealth mode. "Come, they should not see us,"

"What are you talking about? Are you ashamed that they might see us together?!" she raised as she put her hands on her hips. He slapped his palm against his forehead and grunted. Now that she mentioned it, it wasn't that he was embarrassed – but he knew if Hikari found out, she'd never let him get away with it. Of course, Mimi will not understand any excuse he'd make right now.

"We should follow them," he insisted. The three were now aweing at the stingrays. He saw Daisuke simply putting his hand on his sister's shoulder. And Takeru – _that Takeru!_ – was not respecting any personal space.

"Why? Feels weird to see Hikari-chan all grown-up, eh?" teased Mimi. She actually found Taichi's worrywart behavior _cute_. "Which team are you in for anyway? Team Takeru or Team Daisuke?"

"I am – Team Hikari-You-Are-So-Dead-Later," he answered. He was glaring at the trio, as if hoping one of them would get shot. Mimi giggled. She found it definitely cute. _This could be fun, _she thought.

"Let's make a tally on who will have the most skinship," she suggested, now taking out her phone to make a note out of it.

He looked at her in horror. "Mimi!"

For the rest of the time, even when they ate lunch, they tailed his sister. Thankfully, she and Taichi were remained unnoticed by the three. By the end of their date, Daisuke won Mimi's record with 25, while Takeru with 24.

* * *

Much to the band's dismay, they did not get to practice decently at all, thanks to the very uncooperative vocalist. On the bright side, Yamato had finished composing his song.

"Well, that was a waste," complained Shinji as he jabbed . The next band to use the room was already inside, setting up their equipment. Soon enough, the other band was already testing their instruments and practicing songs. Yamato thought they sounded familiar.

"Wait," he told the band. They were already on the exit. "Let's give them a listen,"

Hiroyuki grunted and closed the door. He leaned against the wall, with his arms crossed. The rest followed his gesture, trying to control their temper.

"I think I know this song," said Keisuke to Yamato. The vocalist was singing in perfect English, almost perfect and as if he was a native speaker of the language. "It's one of the weird English songs you keep singing," Keisuke added.

Yamato nodded, highly impressed as well. He wouldn't say that though, especially when his ego has been _teensy-weensy_, slightly bruised by this other band. The vocalist did not look Western, and he was very much Japanese. He was skinny, and had electric blue hair.

The band did not finish the song, as the presence of Yamato's own ring distracted them. The vocalist looked at them, puzzled why they haven't left. The blue-haired boy went over to them.

"Hi," he greeted nonchalantly. Yamato returned his greeting upon noticing that the boy was an inch shorter than him.

"Is something wrong?" the boy asked in very formal Japanese.

The blond shook his head, smiling coolly. "No, we just got interested because you sang in perfect English,"

"I reckon you guys went overseas for some time?" asked Shinji.

The other vocalist smiled back, anxiety disappearing from his face. "Thanks. And umm.. yeah? Sort of. I grew up in America. We're sort of new around here."

_That explains the English,_ thought Yamato.

"We're the _Teenage Wolves_," introduced Yamato as he gave a nod to his band. "I'm Ishida Yamato. You can call me Yamato,"

"We used to be called _Wax and Wane_, then _Psycho Moon_, then to _Narcobears_.." he listed, counting on his fingers. "Right now we're the _Icky Pantsuits_,"

Yamato inwardly grimaced. _For real?_

Hiroyuki nudged Keisuke by the elbow as they snickered. Though the members of Teenage Wolves weren't eloquent in English, they did understand _some _English words, and they couldn't take the other band's name seriously.

The vocalist of Icky Pantsuits offered his palm for a handshake. Yamato accepted the gesture. "I'm Yoshioka Aoiyami. Just call me whatever."

Yamato let go of his hand. He did not know how to take his joke (or was it really a joke?), but he did feel somewhat insulted by his chill vibe. Here he was, trying to be friendly, and then this guy just becomes rude to him. _I even offered him to call me my first name! _he thought.

But maybe this Aoiyami was just too foreign to Yamato, he did mention he was from Ameri _– no_ – Yamato was definitely insulted. He adjusted his guitar case over his shoulder and opened the door. "Okay, _whatever_. See you around."

* * *

**Author's Note: **the lyrics that Yamato wrote is actually from _This is the End_ by **The Maine**. I don't own it. Your reviews will highly be appreciated :)


	15. Saturday Night

**Author's Note: **One, two or three more chapters 'til the end of this one hell of an arc. I've been taking my time perfecting the transition since it will be a big one. But fear not, I love Mimato so much and I'll definitely finish writing this story (even though it's still a long, long way to go).

Nothing much happens in this chapter, except for characters interacting with each other. As for anyone who might ask of Jyou's whereabouts, he's busy adapting to his new life in college. He'll be a more important as the story progresses. Enjoy! :)

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Fifteen  
_Saturday Night_

_._

_._

Video game night, other than hours-long of _Civilization_, included a dozen cans of root beer, fish crackers, and a collection of action movies from the 80's to watch before they go to sleep. It had been a long tradition among them, and unfortunately, there weren't fish crackers – since Yamato had forgotten to buy some – and Taichi resented him over it.

"You had one job, Ishida," Taichi muffled between his munching of the alternative which Koushiro bought – potato chips. They were all gathered in the living room, and Mrs. Yagami was cooking spicy beef in the kitchen. "One job."

"I told you, I forgot. Things got.." repeated Yamato, having already told this to his best friend about seven times since Taichi noticed there weren't any fish crackers. He glanced at his brother Takeru, who seemed to be glaring at him for quite a time now. _Shouldn't I be the angry one here?_

"..complicated." Yamato ended.

Earlier that afternoon, after Taichi and Mimi parted, Yamato met with the brunette. Supposedly they were just going to grab some grub, but Mimi insisted to visit a quaint record shop that sells vinyl records and other music collectibles. He had to admit, it was kind of fun, especially with Mimi making up random stories of the valuable items.

Little did he know though, his younger brother (along with his sidekick, Hikari), followed them. Yamato eventually caught them, and the two brothers stealthily argued about it the whole time 'til they took Mimi home.

Yamato rubbed his forehead, thinking how out of proportion this thing with Mimi had become. But then again, apart from the band, it was thanks to this new female friend of his that he wasn't too miserable of a being, especially after the break-up.

"How is going to the convenient store too complicated for you, sir?" taunted Taichi. In respect of Koushiro, he had been trying all night not to talk about the surprisingly-wonderful date with Mimi (though dear Kou-kun already knew about it). After soccer practice, he went straight home; dumbfounded to see Hikari sitting at their couch with Takeru. He had secretly ordered his sister to remain invisible the whole night.

"Just move on, Yagami," spat Yamato as he opened his own laptop. Koushiro had already booted his own, now prepared for another game of _Civilization_. Yamato wasn't too fond of video games like Koushiro and Takeru are - and yes, he hated Guitar Hero and Rockband to bits. It didn't take him a month or two to become a rock star, by the way – but this certain game was definitely just his style – _I mean, come on,_ _I get to rule a country. _

But of course, not all of them felt the same fancy towards the game.

"Not_ that_ again," Taichi rolled his eyes. He was in no mood to compete, as he had already lost to his friends several times. "I have a PS4 right over there and not one of you even try to play _FIFA 15_ with me,"

"That's because virtually ruling a country is more fulfilling than virtually kicking a ball," mocked Yamato as he grabbed his can of cold drink.

"Come on, Taichi-kun. It's boring when you don't play," insisted the very innocent Takeru. The brunet shot him a look, remembering Takeru having his arm around his sister earlier.

"You know, I think we should invite Daisuke next time," Taichi was trying to irritate him at the mention of his love-rival's name, but Takeru failed to get the hint.

Yamato grunted, now booting his laptop. "But he's worse than you,"

"That's interesting. Taichi-kun and Dai-kun, battling for fourth place – mhmm – really interesting.." wondering Koushiro.

"_Izumi,_ did you just sass me?!"

The redhead smiled, just _too _innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about_, Yagami-kun_,"

"Can we just fucking start now," groaned the older blond.

"Taichi-kun still isn't ready though," said Takeru. He took out his laptop from his backpack.

"I told you, I'm not going to play that game! How come you guys get to pick the game when I am the host of this party?!"

"Because we're the majority. Now get your ass upstairs!" snapped Yamato as Taichi stubbornly made a face.

Their argument continued on for a while as Koushiro and Takeru enjoyed their own peace by playing a random RPG game they recently acquired. Fed up, Yamato grabbed Taichi by the collar and dragged him upstairs for the brunet to fetch his laptop.

They were eventually called by Mrs. Yagami for dinner before they could even start the game; Hikari joined them at the dinner table and sat beside the younger blond, much to Taichi's dismay.

* * *

Sora immediately looked for another distraction as soon as she got home from tennis practice. She had a new hobby now, aside from tending the flowers in their shop and playing tennis. _I can't believe I'm knitting now, _she thought, while weaving a ball of yarn to make an only-God-knows what she'd create from it.

She remembered Taichi come into the football field late afternoon, and he seemed happier than usual. She couldn't help but frown. Taichi having to _reject_ her for the second time was more than just _sad_ – it was humiliating.

_She swiftly adjusted her tennis skirt and improved her backhand smash as soon as she saw Taichi coming from the distance to talk to her. He was still in his casual clothes, and he had an impossibly huge smile in his face. _

"_Sora-chan!" he called out, waving at her from the bench. After an intense series of passes from her opponent, they ended with Sora on advantage. Trying to look cool, she drank from her water jug and sat beside Taichi, who still had the goofiest smile she had ever seen him wear._

"_Taichi-kun," she smiled. It has been days since the rejection but they already went through so much for them to become awkward around each other. This friendship sure is strange, she thought._

But Yamato being cool and chill with her wasn't helping as well – not fond of his high and mighty attitude since the breakup. It seemed as if he was absolutely bitter to her; talking to her too casually – as if nothing happened.

She paused her knitting and stood up from her bed. She looked at herself at the mirror, first noticing her thighs getting too thin. _I should eat more. _She then switched the sides of her hair, checking her face. She gasped at the sight of medium-sized acne on top of her head. She cursed under her breath, but thanked God that her bangs hid the little devil.

It was at that moment when Sora realized that she was so tired and fed up with her misery over Yamato and Taichi. They were exactly the ones who were making her like this, _the cause of this pimple_, she thinks – and she did not like it. She wasn't very conscious and didn't succumb to girlish vanities, but she rarely had pimples, and this just freaked her out.

Without much hesitation, she messaged Mimi for a trip to the mall tomorrow.

* * *

The brunette tried to control her laughter as the guy on her cellphone screen made a weird fish face. There was also a girl beside him, scolding Michael about his lame jokes. It was early morning in America, and Mimi reckoned they were probably the loudest table in the coffee shop they were in. They were studying – _more like, fooling around._

Just like old times.

"But seriously, Mimi!" exclaimed a now-ash-haired Cat as she took the phone away from a chubbier Michael. "What have you been eating there? Your cheeks are fuller now!"

"I quitted smoking, and I'm having my withdrawal often so I eat huge amounts of sugar now," said Mimi in her English.

"Good for you, Mi!" supported Cat, as she gave her a thumbs up. Michael immediately took the phone to face him.

"Mi, I hate to say this, but your 'l' is sounding so much like an 'r' now," he laughed as he continued to tease her.

"You're awful!" Mimi laughed at Michael, who was trying to talk in "Engrisu". Most people get completely offended by Michael's laidback and offensive humor. Perhaps, compared to her friends back here, Michael and Cat were far more open to things, and they didn't take themselves too seriously. Of course, they weren't as perfect as she thought them to be – they did get her involved with –

"Do you guys still see Yoshio?" she asked, trying to _look _and _sound _casual.

"No," the two answered in unison.

"Since you left, we never got to see him at the bar," added Cat. "but enough about New York! How's life there?! So does Jo-Joe-it's _Jyou_, isn't it? – does he still have a crush on you?!"

This was what Mimi was exactly afraid of. "No.. that was like, ages ago, Cat. We were just kids back then!"

Cat only managed an "oh".

"Well, I always thought he's too shy for you," remarked Michael matter-of-factly as he munched a cookie and put a pen on behind his earlobe.

"So.. no new guys over there?" winked Cat as she took a sip from her smoothie.

Mimi scratched her head and lied down on her bed while still looking at her phone. "Well.. if you count Taichi-kun.."

"Taichi?!" the two New Yorkers exclaimed. Mimi noticed Michael spit out his coffee over his papers. _He never changes._

"Well.. I don't know. He said he likes me," said Mimi, as she rolled over to the other side. Her date earlier went extremely well and beyond her expectations – but the anxiety and doubt never left her.

"Stop moving, Mimi! I'm getting dizzy when you move around too much!" complained Michael as he wiped his mouth. "Well, that's surprising. You two might click.."

"Yeah. He seems really cool and manly," prompted Cat, as she had already met Taichi. Mimi looked at her mischievously, knowing that her friend had a crush on the boy.

"I don't know guys, I'm too nervous. I mean, he and Sora.. well, they fancied each other!" She had to be honest; she didn't expect so much drama to happen among her old friends.

"But Sora has Yamato, right?!"

"They broke up, like, a month ago – I dunno, I don't really care when they did," Mimi heard them gasp together. She could feel that the subject of the conversation was going change.

Cat stared at her notes to memorize some physics equations, and then back at Mimi. "So.. Yama is single?"

"Single and not ready to mingle," answered Mimi as she played with her hair. "Which, by the way, Yamato and I are really close now," she boasted.

"Really? How?" asked Michael with an arched brow. Mimi had been talking about his new friendship with Yamato since she got back in Japan, and from bland news, it had become an intriguing story.

"Well.. he treats me nicely and we hang out together," the brunette replied as she flipped her hair behind. She met with Yamato earlier, too, and he had been nice enough to treat her for yakiniku.

"Hmm. Don't you think he fancies you?" Michael felt skeptical about Yamato. He met Mimi's Japanese blond _'friend' _(oh, such a controversial word it was among them!) once, but he wasn't as welcoming as his younger look-a-like, Takeru.

"No," replied Mimi, rejecting the idea flatly. "He's still really into Sora-chan, but he's handling the break-up pretty well.." and then she had noticed she was lying at the last part of her answer.

Michael shrugged, almost agreeing with her. "Well, you're right. He could probably be making you his rebound and he doesn't notice it himself,"

Mimi looked at him in horror. "Michael! No! Nothing's going on with us. We're just friends!"

"Why not go for Yama? He's cute too," suggested Cat while she wrote her notes. Mimi stuck her tongue out to them.

"He is, but no. Just _no_, Cat! He's like a brother! And seriously, it's Yamato-kun we're talking about here! If he was in to me, he would have already showed it." Even when they were children, Yamato was pretty resistant to her.

Surprisingly, the two did not argue with her further. She watched Cat and Michael being studious, and when she got a bit bored, she looked at the surroundings that her friends were in. Mimi thought it wouldn't happen, but she missed New York and the whole mess that came along with it – back there, she was free to be who she was, free to speak out her mind without offending anyone, and free to make her own decisions without anyone judging her. She didn't have to worry about rejecting her male-friends-turned-suitors. All of these rights would have been great, if only freedom didn't come with a price. Mimi shook her head, clearing her mind from haunting memories.

"So.. I guess I'll just leave you guys then?" spoke Mimi up, feeling slightly hurt that her friends seemed to have forgotten she was on the camera. Cat snapped out of her focus and looked at Mimi apologetically.

"So-sorry Mi! Ahh. Yeah, I'll call you later okay?"

"Okay,"

"Take care, Mimi! We love you!" bid Michael.

"Stay nicotine-free!" grinned Cat.

"Okay guys! I love you too!" Mimi waved at them goodbye until their video call had ended.

There was nothing else but silence in her dimly-lit pink room. Mimi checked her phone for messages. A heavy sigh of relief came from her lips, when the most anticipated person to message her had finally graced her inbox. As if a huge thorn was taken out of her heart, she happily replied to Sora with her most eager _"yes"_.


	16. Buttons

**Author's Note: **Just about time! Anyone watched the _Digimon Adventure Tri_ trailer? I'm impressed and disappointed at the same time. Taichi's design was the best, whilst Yamato's was the worst for me. He looked so messy there instead of 'clean, calm and cool'. I loved Mimi's design - pretty, seemingly intimidating; but I do hope she retains her toned-down personality. I like mature Mimi (late 01, whole 02) the most. I hate Sora's hair in the_ Tri_ design, by the way.

Another good thing about it is I can imagine Yamato and Mimi in their _Tri_ designs now. And as far as this story goes.. they're so hot together, it's a freaking supernova. Their appearances really go well with the very first Mimato drabble I wrote. Hehe.

Also, I would like to explain something regarding some events in this chapter, in case anyone else does not know: **1.)** Hanafuda is a type of card game (just look it up); **2.)** in Japanese culture (I see it a lot in anime and Japanese dramas, though I'm not sure if they really do it), a girl asks for the second button of the boy (who is about to graduate) she likes. Why the second button - because it is said to be the closest in the boy's heart. The male version of this, if my memory does not fail me, is that he asks for the ribbon of the girl.

Okay, enough rambling. Here's chapter sixteen!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Sixteen  
_Buttons_

_._

_._

_End of Spring_

_._

"So, there it is, I decided to go to Todai," pointed Taichi at his form. Yamato peeped over Taichi's shoulder, and smirked as he read the words "_Political Science"._

"You're joking me."

"I am offended."

"You don't have the right to be. You don't even know if you passed,"

Taichi took his paper with him, snorted and went to Sora, who was filling in her own college application. Yamato smiled to himself. He liked bursting Taichi's happy bubble. Without much thought, he followed Taichi and stood behind his ex-girlfriend. Yamato watched the two of them talk about their future. Taichi kept pressing her to take culinary studies, while Sora just rebuked the brunet's idea over and over. Like lightning, Yamato wondered how things would have turned out if Sora went for Taichi instead of him. Maybe she would have smiled more often.

"Ugh. What are you doing here now? Came to crush my dreams again, Ishida?" ridiculed Taichi. Sora immediately bobbed her head to at the mention of her ex-lover's name.

Yamato laughed. "No. Just interested on how you'll pursue those dreams, _Tai-kun_,"

"At least I have dreams. What about you? Planning to major in rock n' roll and.. um.. breaking things?" snorted his chestnut-haired friend. He cursed under his breath, ashamed he couldn't think of a more witty comeback.

_"Au contraire,_" the blond haughtily took out his own form and showed it to Taichi and Sora. He saw the ginger's eyes widened upon reading his own application.

"Physics?! Since when were you good at science?!" exclaimed Taichi, as he remembered being Yamato's laboratory partner. Both of them did very poorly and had to get help from Sora every time they wrote their reports.

"I thought you'd pursue Music.." muttered Sora. Stunned that she remembered what he told her three years ago, the blonde instantly looked away from her direction and focused on Taichi.

"Well anyway," Yamato cleared his throat. "Like you, Taichi, I don't have my results from Todai yet, so.." already out of words, he rolled his form. The three remained silent as they started thinking of the future.

Taichi sat on an empty desk beside Sora, putting a hand under his chin. "Things will change, huh.."

* * *

The three of them intimately sat beside each other; their chairs forming a little triangle as Daisuke and Takeru played a game of Hanafuda. Hikari moved a bit away from the two as she felt Takeru's arm brushing up against hers. Thanks to an unexpected pep talk from her older brother, she started to become very wary of physical contact. She did not notice Daisuke being really touchy-feely too until now.

"Stop trying to look at my cards, Dai!" warned off Takeru as he moved further away from him.

"I'm not looking at your cards, Takeru," he replied sheepishly, placing a matching card at the center. He was two cards away from a combo. Takeru, however, was just a card away. But he wouldn't be able to win if his opponent kept peeping at his cards.

The blond drew off a Bright card from his set, took its match from the center and completed his eight-point combination, Ame-Shiko.

"Ha!" he smiled brightly, pointing a mocking finger at the loser. He happily put his last card among the clutter, then leaning back on his chair coolly.

"_Ame shiko_," stated Hikari as she tallied their scores with a pen and unused toilet paper. "Dai-kun has 34 points, and Takeru-kun with 49 now,"

The maroon-haired boy placed his leftover cards on the table and crossed his arms out of frustration. He didn't really like being beaten by Takeru on front of his crush. "Okay, I don't want to play anymore. Takeru always wins!"

"Don't be silly Dai-kun, you always beat him when you play poker," teased Hikari.

Takeru's smile turned to a frown. He looked around their classroom, each student busy – some with a book, some with their portable gaming devices, and some were playing trading cards, trying to pass the time. "Eh, more so, where's teacher? Aren't we supposed to practice for the graduation ceremony?"

"Hmm. I guess so.. I'll look for someone in the teachers' lounge," volunteered Daisuke. "Anyone wanna come with me?" and instantly both of his friends looked away, as if they were strangers. He groaned, and stood up from his seat.

"Fine, I'll go alone," he said, taking his deck of Hanafuda cards. Their eyes followed Daisuke's moving figure, 'til he shut the classroom door.

Instantly, Takeru took the advantage to be one-on-one with Hikari. She was busy with her phone, but he didn't feel like he was going to be bothersome.

"So why didn't you come with him, Kari-chan?" he teased with a taunting smile.

"Takeru-kun," she said, her eyes still on her phone. "I'm not even going to talk about this with you."

"And why not?"

"Because it's stupid."

He smirked, then raised the pitch of his voice. "_Dai-kun_ will feel hurt when he hears that,"

"Don't even try, _Takaishi_," She really, _really,_ really hated it when he kept pairing her up with Daisuke.

"But Kari-chan," he moved closer to her, trying to find out why her phone was keeping her busy. "Daisuke likes you a lot." not for long he found out she was playing a word game.

"Like I don't know,"

"You're going to grow up as a very harsh woman,"

"I plan to be a hybrid of Sora-chan and Mimi-chan, thank you very much,"

Takeru laughed, amused how she could still be cute while also being irritated. "Trust me, you're not even close to that."

It wasn't because of the words Takeru said that made Hikari angry; rather, because the very words came from himself. She was getting fed up for tolerating his ambiguity; this mind game (she was still unsure if it really was a mind game, or if it was all just in her head) that she was playing with him. She threw a one, very short yet unforgiving look at him.

He was caught in a surprise, when Hikari abruptly stood up from her seat, and without a word, stormed out of the room without getting noticed by anyone. With her balled fists came to rest, she looked for Daisuke.

Meanwhile, back in the classroom, Takeru stared at the door, with irritation and disbelief. Since when did she become so sensitive? _All this drama for one joke?!_ He did not know how many sacrifices he should make just to keep her happy, even if they're just friends. God, _I'll never understand her._

* * *

Yamato glared at Taichi and Mimi as they laughed their hearts out after a witty joke was made about the course he opted. Sora, who was in between the two brunets, awkwardly ate her bread, trying not to let out even the faintest chuckle. Yamato turned to his side, saw that Koushiro, as silent as he was, grinned ear to ear. The musician ran a hand through his hair and crossed his arms, trying to keep his composure.

"Seriously, Taichi majoring in Political Science is more hilarious and insane. I can't even imagine him running for mayor," he scorned, hoping someone will bandwagon with his poorly-thought retort.

"Oh Yamato-kun, I'm so sorry, it's just—!" It was the times when Mimi complained, or when she unstoppably giggles, that Yamato couldn't bear her shrilly voice. Even more so when she was making fun of him. She asked Koushiro to imagine Yamato in a spacesuit; this resulted to a louder laughter, even Sora couldn't hold back. The mirth eventually died down when Taichi was approached by a female junior of his, and everyone was intently watching them.

"Taichi-senpai.." the girl, as if running out of breath, lowered her back for a bow. Koushiro seemed to have recognized her from the judo club. "Can I please have your second button?!"

Taichi's eyes widened as if he had almost spit out his rice to Koushiro, while Mimi and Yamato tried not to laugh at their friend out of embarrassment. Koushiro was also making a face.

The girl ended up crying that it wasn't the second, but the first button. But nonetheless she thanked Taichi and joined her own friends again, tightly clasping the button as if her life held on to it. Sora sighed out of relief as she looked back to her food, being reminded how Taichi was very popular at school. It wasn't because Taichi held the same reputation and killer looks like Yamato, but rather his charm and charisma that just makes him very likeable – to boys and girls alike.

"God, I can't believe girls still do that," complained Sora to her female friend. Taichi overheard, and took the opportunity to put the auburn-haired on the spotlight.

"Ha, right. You took Jyou-kun's button last year, remember?" said Taichi who only had three buttons in his coat now.

Despite already going out with Yamato, no one could really deny that Sora and Jyou were akin to best friends, after all. Yamato didn't mind, but that didn't mean Taichi was going to let her get away with it.

"Sora-chan! Whyyy! You had Ishida!" played Mimi, finding it the perfect opportunity for the two to make up and go back to being friends.

"Oh Mimi-chan, that button was anything but romantic!" defended the ginger as she shook Mimi's clingy hold on her. She could feel Yamato looking at her, and even more so with a deadly glare on Mimi. And as far Sora knew Taichi, he was not in the mood to elevate the awkward predicament either.

"Well, Sora, you were always going _'notice me senpai'_ with Jyou even when we were kids," Well, as far as he could remember, Sora spoke highly of Jyou out of her admiration.

"I think both of you had lost it," she shrieked, turning to the other redhead on front of her. "Kou-kun, back me up here!"

The other, darker-tinted ginger looked up from his meal, forming a kind smile on his face.

"I'm sorry Sora-chan," he muffled in between his chewing. Koushiro's incompetence at times like this only meant that he was enjoying the teasing. Yamato secretly snickered as he turned to his food. Mimi seemed to have caught him do so.

"Why is no one trying to get Yamato-kun's button?" asked Mimi as she playfully looked at the blond. He became alerted upon hearing his name. The girl seemed too oblivious that she and Taichi had indirectly put Sora and himself on the spotlight – a place he didn't want to be. He was running out of temper.

"No one attempts to because everyone still reckons Sora will get the button," answered Taichi in a very blunt manner. "Of course, I'd like to see Jun try,"

Sora, Yamato, and Koushiro cringed at the mention of the name. Mimi knew nothing about her, however. "Jun?"

But before anyone could answer her, Yamato shut her off. "None of your business, Princess." He stood up along with his tray, walking out before he could snap at any of them. He couldn't bare all the intimacy with Sora there, pretending things were okay.

A long, familiar silence was shared among the rest of them as they hastily finished their meals. Mimi was the first to break in.

"Is Yamato angry?" she was starting to regret making fun of him, since he seemed very serious the entire time.

"He is," replied Koushiro nonchalantly. "But it's not your fault, Mimi-chan."

"Yeah.." assured Sora, finishing her drink. She wiped off the substance from her lips. "He's angry because I'm here." The admittance no longer held anything to her. No way was she going to take responsibility of Yamato being difficult. As if a completely renewed person, she took out her lip balm and patted it lightly on her lips. _Not anymore._

The brunette frowned and glanced at Yamato's back, who was already at the queue. She started to marvel at his really attractive physique, from his hair, down to his really flourished shoes. He seemed really composed despite the pushing of the crowd. _Grace under pressure indeed. _Her admiration turned to envy. "God, he can be annoyingly self-righteous,"

"Eh. He's always been like that," said Taichi expertly. A day never went by without him and Yamato getting into each other's nerves, even when they don't see each other.

Soon after, they all gathered their trash and trays. The four of them reached the queue, and Yamato had already headed back to their classroom. Mimi heard Sora sigh and Taichi groan at the sight of their moody, blond-haired friend.

"Mimi," Taichi thrusted a small item on her hand from behind. Surprised, she took a good look at the item from her palm, then blushed. She glanced at Sora, who was on her front, then looked at Taichi, confused. He now only had two buttons on his coat.

"Is this really necessary?" she asked, already giving it back.

He gently pushed her hand away. "Meh. Keep it."

She stared at the navy blue button, then back at him. "I only came back here three or four months ago though,"

He made a small, sympathetic smile, and Mimi knew that he wasn't looking at her even if they were facing each other. And it was even more confusing when he said, "It's not like I can give it to _her_,"

* * *

Takeru ate along with his other friends. It was unusual of him eating at the cafeteria, and his eyes wandered around for any sight of Hikari or Daisuke. Curiously, the two hadn't come back after they left the classroom. He searched for them at the patio, where they usually eat. Instead, he found the neighboring stray cat which the three of them petted.

Not for long, after finishing his meal, he used the remainder of lunchtime searching for the two. Takeru grew anxious as places and minutes passed him by. One of his teachers told him that his two friends dropped by earlier, and then headed to the direction of the library. The librarian, who knew every face in the campus, said that she overheard them talking about going to the ceremony hall. None of the information was found useful.

Sorts of images came to mind, images that he shouldn't be seeing. Such strange thoughts that he shouldn't even be thinking - not with Hikari, at least. _Such is the struggle of a very advanced teen._

He climbed up at the rooftop, hoping to see the two. He already heard their familiar voices on the other side. As if all hope was restored in the world, he hastily ran towards the door.

"Kari-chan! Daisuke-ku—" he was about to open it, until –

"_There's no doubt. I like Takeru."_

His hand froze as it held the doorknob. There was a very long silence.

He heard Daisuke speak up. "_He doesn't seem to like you, though."_

_Wrong. _

Takeru heard Hikari giggle, followed by a very heavy sigh. "_Yeah, I know."_

For Takeru, they were very much_ wrong_.


	17. Free Spirits

**Author's Note:** Been busy nowadays and I couldn't write as much as I wanted to. Real life already ensues, but I guarantee everyone that I'll keep writing. I do hope you'd all keep reading and supporting, and be patient with this amateur writer. I hate adult life.. _donchu? _(internal struggles of a millenial)

To **sarange,** I'm deeply touched by your review! Your tiny description about this story really helped me on setting my foot back on this story's theme. Thank you very much, and I hope you enjoy this! **Valechan92,** I'm sorry I just replied to your review m'dear! I'm glad you're loving the Takari parts :3 - there are barely some comments on the Takari! it sort of worries me sometimes if readers still see their story relevant (lol). **soojinah**, thank you! And yes, that little Jyoura is no coincidence (evil smize). As for Yama's button, I hope Mimi gets it (tee hee hee). **Scripturiens,** don't know if this one can be considered a filler, but I think I've been writing the recent chapter lighter because of all the _dramabombz_ earlier in this story D: but! Maybe this chapter could reveal more about everyone, post-drama era. I hope it does anyway (hehe). Thanks for always checking up on this story! (heart heart)

Also have to warn everyone that this chapter barely contains any line breaks. My apology in case it becomes difficult to read on. It was sort of fun writing a continuously flowing scene, but hard. Hehe. Also, another apology if this comes off too poorly-written. I didn't have time to proofread. Cheers!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Seventeen  
_Free Spirits_

_._

_._

It rained all day in one of the last days of spring, yet the skies remained light blue despite the downpour. Night was a bit colder than the usual spring days, but Yamato had always liked the smell of it as he walked past several neon-lit shops and stores. It was that time of the season again, when they'd camouflage into adults, and Taichi will use his fake ID to get liquor from the karaoke bar.

"I'm glad you're joining us today, Sora-chan," said Koushiro as he walked beside the redhead. She sheepishly turned away as the thought of letting Yamato know she will be drinking still affects her so.

"This is probably your only third time joining us though," called out Taichi from the front.

The female ginger sought for a good retort, but only managed an explanation for this unique occasion.

"Well, it's good to put a little recklessness once in a while,"

The brunette next to Sora started to remember her nights spent out in the Big Apple; Mimi had to admit to herself that she had her share of fooling around. She wondered if it was the pink hair that gave her the audacity to be reckless.

"It's easier to get drinks in America, even if you're underage," chirped in Mimi. Yamato raised his brows after hearing her statement, taking this little detail as one of Mimi's New York exploits. He had almost forgotten that she knew the, _er_, know-hows.

"'I'd like to see that wild child in you, Mimi." He teased. He was on front of them as well, just strolling beside Taichi. The presence of Sora in the group made him slightly edgy, but tried his best to remain cool.

"Hehe, Mimi-chan always tells me stories about her weird experiences," said Takeru, approaching Mimi and distancing from Hikari.

"Oi Ishida, don't even start," the brunette warned. She noticed that Yamato was very fond of playing with her weakness – which was her very horrid past that she kept burying; though futile since he just kept resurrecting it.

Yamato only continued to tease as they were nearing the district. "Feeling guilty now, eh Tachikawa?"

The familiarity between Yamato and Mimi was still quite novel among everyone, to be honest. How the most non-interactive pair managed to become very close friends in the span of four months was a new record for the crest bearer of Friendship. It was strange to see them so close now.

"Why are you doing this to me now, Yamato-kun," Mimi then came from behind to get close to Yamato, hissing about how he should never mention such thing that would remind everyone that she was a _bad girl_. Such label on Mimi was funny, unbelievable, frightening _but_ true.

_Very strange, indeed. _Hikari approached Takeru as his right side was already void of any presence. "Eh, your brother and Mimi-chan are awfully close now,"

The younger blond jilted at the sudden proximity between them, but tried his best not to scare Hikari away. For Takeru, things have never been the same between them since he found out. Of course, he has yet to inform her of this stolen knowledge.

"Well, yeah.. if you look at it, really, their personalities aren't that different for them not to be friends," though he wouldn't say he wasn't surprised, it was definitely not something strange.

The conversation went on between Hikari and Takeru, thoughtlessly gossiping – while the subjects of the chat were in a friendly banter.

"They're really close now, aren't they?" whispered Koushiro to the other ginger next to him. Taken aback, Sora turned away from the sight, now realizing a new envy.

She looked back at them, and from a distance it seemed as if they were flirting with each other. Taichi seemed very oblivious to this, though. She feigned a grin to Koushiro as the rest had already entered the karaoke bar.

"Yeah, they are." Once Sora realized that her thoughts were getting darker, she scolded herself for her judgmental attitude. She knew Mimi would never do betray her – but what probably irritated her was the very thought that Yamato now has another girl who knows him better than she did; while Mimi is unlikely to be his new lover, she was definitely becoming a best friend to him – _but why Mimi, of all people?_ Now, Sora was starting to hate herself for even thinking such things.

They sat according to comfort; Sora sat between Koushiro and Mimi, Takeru beside his older brother – Yamato next to Taichi, and Taichi next to Hikari.

Taichi had already given out their orders of snacks and booze. They have gotten away from underage supervision as usual, as the girls wore a bit of make-up and the boys.. well. Apart from Koushiro and Takeru, they managed to get away effortlessly. Takeru had already been flipping through the songs list, beside him was Mimi peeping over his shoulder. The night had passed by smoothly as drink after drink was consumed; Taichi had been louder; Koushiro more extroverted; Sora gaining a sense of humor; Hikari was asleep; Takeru was not so, as he was loudly arguing with Mimi. Yamato, however, was still sober. Though, he was sure finishing up his drink would be the last of him.

Like normal drunken group of friends, they took the chance to let the alcohol do their talking – there came in words that would never escape their mouths if not for the liquor. Takeru was the very first.

"So, Sora-chan, you see, I like this certain girl," he said in a very drunk manner as he pointed at Hikari's flushed sleeping face. "She says she likes me too but I don't think she understands why I'm not making moves on her, you know?"

"That's stupid, even I won't believe you if I was in her place,"

Takeru was silenced, sobered a bit. If he was to be with Hikari now, him, at fourteen – the chance of being '_together forever'_ was very miniscule. He remembered his divorced parents – both haunting figures of a young, premature love that had triumphed and lost for the same reasons. If being in a relationship also came with the risk of losing Hikari; if it will come from his recklessness, ignorance or immaturity, _then count me out._

But explaining that to Sora in a very detailed fashion would not make sense, especially when he's not even feeling like himself at all tonight. "I'm scared."

She immediately empathized with her ex's brother, as if all love experiences were coming out like a big flashback. "Sounds like someone I really know," she said, shooting a nonchalant yet unamused look to Taichi.

"Why are you looking at me? I'm not your ex," he shot, as he looked grimly at a very clear-headed Yamato.

"I can't believe I liked you," she snapped with a finger pointed at Taichi. Her finger then turned to Yamato, who sat alone on the couch across them. "And more so that I even went out with you,"

"Shut up Sora, you're the unbelievable one here," hiccuped Taichi as he shoved her by the shoulder. _ Stupid Sora_, she was the one who broke his heart. "Good thing Mimi-chan's here to save me,"

"Oi Tai-kun – _sniff _– we're not even close to that," shrilled Mimi as she struggled to rest her head on her weakened palm. "Though I think you're really hot, first of all, you're not my type. I go for band dudes –_ sniff_ – like Yamato-kun,"

The blond was rather flattered at the careless admission – but dismissed it right away as he remembered that Mimi's ex was also a _band dude_. He had not come face to face with _– oh, what's his name again? _– but he couldn't help but compare himself. Judging from a photo she showed him, her ex seemed cooler, edgier, and probably broke several guitars than he did.

A very emotional Sora came to the conversation, "How can you find Taichi hot, Mimi-chan! And why are you telling me that my ex is your type!" Just as he thought, Sora wasn't completely over him, just as he is for her. Though he had already moved on from the idea of getting back together with her, his last wish was for them to be at least friends again. He frowned, realizing it seemed unlikely for that to be soon.

"Mimi-chan, what about me? Why not me?" cried Koushiro, as he collected himself by turning into a ball of feelings. But Mimi had ignored him, and so did everyone but Sora.

"Sora-chan, don't leave me," pleaded Mimi as she clung on to the redhead's arm. Though personally she enjoyed Taichi's company, this whole ordeal with him had been more problematic; putting her in the awkward spotlight with Sora too many times. She couldn't imagine if her friendship with the both of them was to falter. "I don't know who'll do my braids if you leave!"

None of his friends' (and ex's) behavior seemed to have shaken Yamato, however. He was rather amused of the very brutal honesty that came out from the table. But maybe this was what they all just needed, to let all the dirt out before they part ways. That is.. if they'll still remember all of this by tomorrow morning.

The group continued on with their conversation as it eventually molded into a game of ridiculous and random dares –the first dare was for Takeru to pull out a strand of Hikari's hair without waking her up. He successfully managed to pluck a strand by his fourth attempt. In turn, Takeru dared Mimi to reapply her make-up without a mirror. Much to Takeru's dismay, she was very good at it. As for everyone else's dares, Sora's was the most extreme. She had to wash her hair with scotch, but only managed to dip some of her short locks. This dare came from none other than Taichi.

It was already ten in the evening when they all decided to go home. Recovering from the drunken state was Takeru and Koushiro, who were going to help Yamato out in bringing the rest to their houses.

"We won't be able to fit in the cab," said Yamato as he placed Taichi on the bench. He crossed his arms, looked at Hikari, Sora – _where's Mimi?_ Already panicking, he looked around, and found relief when he saw her crouching down to a plant, calling it 'Palmon'. Yamato snickered. It would have been a good video for blackmail. His watch was interrupted by Koushiro.

"How do we split?"

_Right,_ thought Yamato. He was yet to figure that out yet. Apparently, he, Mimi, and Koushiro go home to the same direction while Takeru, Sora, Taichi, and Hikari on the other side – he's sure Takeru won't be able to take care the three, though. He does not want to put Koushiro in an awkward situation with Mimi either.

Takeru stepped in, anticipating his brother's answer at his own suggestion. "I think Koushiro-kun can take Mimi-chan home, aniki,"

"Hmm." He looked over at Koushiro, searching for an assurance that he'd be okay.

"I can take Mimi-chan home, Yamato-kun." He guaranteed, forcing a smile. But Yamato knew better.

"Okay," said Yamato. He looked at Mimi again, who had already dozed off on the grass.

"Ahh.. try to sober her up first. Mr. Tachikawa might turn into the Hulk if he finds her like.." he paused, noticing the drunken brunette talking in her 'sleep'. ".._this."_

"I'm sure Koushiro-kun can handle it," assured Takeru as he started to hail for an empty taxi cab. It didn't take him that long to get one, and had eventually parted ways from Mimi and Koushiro.

"Ariake Park, please." The driver turned on his meter and silently drove through lively night as Yamato enjoyed the view from the window.

"Mhhmm.. Koushiro, you idiot.." muttered Taichi in his sleep. "Mimi doesn't like either of us.."

_How true_, chuckled Yamato to himself.

"Aniki,"

"What is it, Takeru?"

"You and Mimi-cha—"

"Takeru, not this again, you know that – "

"It's not just me who thinks it's strange."

Yamato clenched his jaw, trying not to sound angry or loud. "What's so strange about it, Takeru? Mimi's friends with everyone. What's so bad about us being friends?"

Takeru would have already bought it, if only his brother wasn't so defensive. It had been so long since he and his brother talked about something like this, which was very unusual for them. The younger blond sighed as he looked away from his brother then to Hikari, who had passed out since her first shot of margarita. But it had already been hours – and Hikari's face looked too stiff to be fast asleep. He could also say the same to Sora's. As for Taichi, he was very much drunk. "Then at least tell me how, _aniki_."

"Why does it even matter?"

"It _doesn't_ matter," he snapped, eyeing the fidgety Sora. "I just want to know."

"Don't worry. She's asleep." assured Takeru.

Yamato ran a hand through his hair, feeling embarrassed that he had to say it, especially when the driver could hear. "Mimi was the only person I got to talk to when things were difficult with Taichi.. and when Sora and I were.. falling apart,"

"I couldn't really talk about it to anyone else since no one understood.. well. You know what I mean," he articulated with a hint of frustration as he rambled his way through.

"Sorry for not fitting in your qualifications," taunted Takeru for his own lack 'relationship experience'. He looked through the window, noticing the colorful lights of Rainbow Bridge from afar. His eyes then turned to Sora's stiffened face. He smiled, unsure why, but maybe because Sora looked more at ease. "but I'm glad you and Mimi-chan became friends."

"I think everyone can agree that Mimi changed a lot," he admitted. "I like her better right now."

"Mimi-chan was always likeable. You were just an extremely hard-assed, disagreeable boy then," laughed Takeru.

"Of course I was," agreed Yamato with sarcasm. He looked at Takeru at the back through the side mirror, who was staring off not at the window, but somewhere else. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"You were rather unusually awkward,"

_Heh._ "So you've noticed."

"You sure move slow,"

"I've been told by many."

Yamato paused, looking at the side mirror. "She likes you."

"I know." He croaked, now staring at the 'sleeping' brunette's face turn pink.

"You like her too." She was smiling faintly, so faint only Takeru could tell the difference.

"I do." And this was what entirely Yamato had been trying to understand. Usually, most people at Takeru's age would explore their capabilities of being reckless. But Takeru just did not belong to 'most people', and had been thinking two steps ahead of everyone.

At times Yamato thought he had figured Takeru out, but then, he just needed to make sure. "So what's holding you back, apart from your excuse of being a teenager?"

It didn't take Takeru that long to answer. He knew very well in mind why. He looked through the window nonchalantly. They were nearing their destination. "I'd lose her along the way,"

Yamato thought it was too early of a very immature assumption. "You don't know that, Takeru."

"_Lose,_ like mom and dad lost each other." added the younger.. His admission to his brother was not something he feared for Hikari to find out. She had every right to know.

And of course, it had stricken Yamato in more ways than one, confirming his long-held thoughts and psychoanalysis of his younger brother. He knew Takeru wasn't one to brood, but surely – whatever happened in the past greatly affected them so – especially for one who had witnessed the failure of love between their parents and the triumph of death among their Digimon friends. All of that grandeur, when Takeru was barely eight years old.

He felt rather useless, unable to say anything of support – because he understood him very well.

"Shame," broke in Yamato. "I can't make fun of you on that."

Takeru gave a chuckle, still staring at the girl beside him. His honesty was what Hikari needed. She had every right to know. "It's not a big deal."

For a while, it frightened Yamato that Takeru couldn't notice that _this_ was very much of a big deal.

* * *

For most of the time, Koushiro remained mute as he led Mimi to a convenient store near their neighbourhood. He purchased some bottled water, an energy drink, and a bar of chocolate. None for him, just for the girl he was with.

Koushiro felt a bit disoriented, upon seeing his unusually shabby reflection from the glass. He sat beside his drunken friend, who was playing a matching game on her phone. He reckoned she was slightly sober by now.

"Izumi Kou-kun," _Yep._ She was still drunk, especially with that goofy grin on her face.

"Mimi-chan, you should eat this," He placed a chocolate bar on front of her. "Also, drink this," he then placed a can of energy drink beside the chocolate.

Mimi eyed on the items, her goofy grin turning into a sympathetic smile. She had regained full consciousness, thanks to a good game of virtual Hanafuda and this creeping feeling of sympathy. And the sight of the items reminded her that dear Kou-kun cared for her deeply, despite the rut their friendship is in. It had been a while since they got alone together.

"Thank you," she ripped up the wrapper, took a huge bite from the chocolate. "I don't need the energy drink, Kou-kun. I'm okay now."

And it broke her heart when Koushiro blushed, bowed, and even apologized for bothering her.

"Ahh. You, Taichi-kun, Sora-chan, and Hikari-chan were all too drunk earlier," he said, grabbing the energy drink for himself. "Yamato-kun and Takeru-kun brought them home."

"That's good to hear."

Another silence came into the air. It lasted until Mimi finished the sweet. Nothing much came into conversation, just an update on the others, recalling what happened earlier; and after Koushiro drank all of the drink, they walked in silence until the reach her doorstep.

"Thank you, Kou-kun," thanked Mimi as enthusiastically as she could, hoping she'd see the same emotion in Koushiro. "Good night!"

But he only nodded, and said, "You're welcome. Good night, Mimi-chan." And he turned his heels away.

Mimi sighed, fell on her buttocks on their doormat. Her thoughts came in jumbled, but to her they made sense. She couldn't help but wonder if she and Koushiro would still share the same lunch table next school year.


	18. En Route

**Author's Note: **It's been so hard to keep up nowadays. I really wished I could have done more (and better). I hope this suffices for now. Please leave your reviews; I love reading insights. :)

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Eighteen  
_En Route_

_._

_._

He was good at disappearing and coming out of nowhere. The whole spring, Jyou dedicated all of himself to college and his research paper. He had successfully been included as one of the most refined researches in Todai, at least in the freshmen category.

It had been a busy spring. After finding out the family business was gradually going downhill, he had to bid his Harvard dreams goodbye for now, and started to help out with the clinic. It was at this time Jyou had completely shut himself out from friends and peers. Unlike others, Jyou had always been alone, and he was never one to brood about it – he wanted to think he was that time-traveling space-alien character of a British sci-fi show that was popular among his college peers. It appeased to his solitude, at least.

Jyou yawned, feeling rather sleepy after finishing the clinic's accounting books the whole night. He fixed the books, placed them under his bed. He then cleaned up his glasses, and put them beside his lamp. He took out his mobile phone, seeing that it was already four in the morning.

_Ahh, mornings_. It was reality pulling him back: that maybe sometimes, he did feel unwanted, unneeded. He knew everyone too well – Taichi, Sora, Yamato, Koushiro, Mimi, Takeru, and Hikari, would be all right without him. Sure, they'd all occasionally message him, ask him to come along with them, but his absence won't really affect them so much – at least not like the way Mimi affected them when she left for America.

He received messages from Sora and Hikari, both asking him to come over to their graduation dinners on Thursday and Friday, respectively. He smiled. It felt nice that some had remembered him.

He was looking forward for the days to come, knowing that at least he could unwind a little this summer.

He returned his phone to his bedside as he readied his sheets and stretched his too-feminine legs. Jyou looked at the clock, silently thanking that he still has three hours before his last day of his term starts. Three hours was already generous, and he was going to make every hour worth the snooze.

* * *

Morning was rather unusual for Daisuke. Despite best efforts, Daisuke failed to make a decent small talk both with Hikari and Takeru. Though the three of them sat near each other, the avoidance had not gone unnoticed.

"Is there something I don't know about? Is there something wrong," the maroon-haired asked for the sixth time. He didn't like getting left out. "Man, we can't part like this, it's graduation day in two days."

But the two remained quiet, obsessed with their little _worlds_ as Hikari was solving a whole book of Sudoku; Takeru, finally writing on the notebook Mimi gave him months ago.

Takeru wondered if Hikari remembered anything from last night; wondered even more if she was really awake during the taxi ride. They had only exchanged their good mornings just a while ago, and it was as if she retreated in her own world – where he didn't exist. Whether she was doing it on purpose or not, his mind had already been free of obligations. He excused himself from Daisuke, told him he's going to the loo. He stood up, bringing his notebook with him. He passed by Hikari and then some of their classmates.

He let out a big sigh of relief when he was out of the room. He had said what he had to say to Hikari, and it was up to her on how she'll take it.

"Ahhhhhh.." Hikari dropped her book and pencil, as she placed her hands on her head. _That was so awkward! _Truthfully, she had been sleepless since she got home, when all she did was to ponder over Takeru's words. He said he likes her. But he also said he wouldn't make a move on her. She struggled, tried to detangle the polarizing tugs in her heart until dawn broke in; when she had realized Takeru had seriously _out-vagued_ (if there was such a word) himself.

The only question now was how her relationship with the blond going to change… it was either a hello or a goodbye.. Or maybe both.

"Well someone needs to remind you to breathe," her maroon-haired friend had seen this, and he wasn't going to let the opportunity pass him by. Sure, getting rejected by Hikari week by week bruised his shrinking ego, but his curiosity always gets the best of him. Daisuke sat on an empty seat on front of the brunette.

"Did something happen?" he questioned with a serious look on his face.

"Ah. It's nothing.." an effortless answer which effortlessly failed. Soon enough Hikari realized Daisuke was not buying it – and he was definitely not going to let her go with her poorly-thought answer. She might as well be honest with him.

"Ahh. We drank yesterday." he huffed, disappointed, slightly offended that he wasn't invited _again_. It was something he still had to get used to. But there was something more important than his jealousy – like, _what did Takeru and Hikari do while drinking out?_ He had let his imagination gone wild. "I see.."

"We were with onii-chan and the others.." And Daisuke's mind circus had been put to a stop. He let out a sigh, relieved that his assumptions were wrong.

"I see.. so what happened?"

"I found out he likes me." Desperate, Hikari had narrated events of last night, as much as she wanted to keep it as her own secret. She was sleepless, helpless – a joint feeling that she reckoned most love-stricken teenagers goes through. She hated it, since she had thought she was better at handling these things.

"I see.." Daisuke was running out of words to reply to the brunette; as he couldn't understand his blond friend as well. Setting his feelings and jealousy aside, he put himself in Hikari's shoes.

_Yep._ He would probably have walked out much earlier than Hikari.

It did not take long, that Takeru returned inside, as the two scrambled to act normal and not look like they were talking about him.

Hikari returned to her Sudoku book, and Daisuke turned to Takeru as they talk about this coming season's baseball. It lasted until they were called by their class representative to head over at the ceremony hall.

* * *

The same awkwardness could be found inside Sora's class, but it was altogether different. Yamato and Taichi had entered the classroom a bit late, both seemingly hung over from last night. The unusual quiet among their area was unusually refreshing.

"This is sort of a bad thing," said Taichi from his table. "Our last day of high school… and we're wasted."

"I didn't get drunk though," said Yamato, lifting his head from his table. "But my head feels as if someone's juicing it," he reckoned it was probably him having to stay up all night.

"How are you, Sora?" Taichi turned to the ginger, who seemed surprised.

"Ah. I'm fine, Taichi." Fine, but not really. The thing about remembering a drunken night with friends and ex-lovers was that it can really make things feel more unusual. And this was just exactly what Sora felt.

Now knowing Taichi still held it against her, and is actually serious about Mimi, it felt all hope was lost. And Yamato – Yamato just sounds too attached with her best friend, and it just made her stomach feel funny. She struggled the whole night, thinking of these things.

"You should drink soup," she advised to the brunet, and indirectly to the blond. Her mother had prepared her some powder-based chicken soup last night, and it had immediately regained her healthy, sensible self despite the MSG. "It will take away the hangover."

"Hmm.. maybe." She heard Yamato reply, but was looking at his desk instead.

She was more surprised when Taichi moved his chair and table closer to hers, with a serious look on his face. Whatever he was going to say now, will definitely boggle her mind more. She anticipated for him to speak up first.

"Sora," he whispered. She gulped the lump on her throat. "I need to talk to Mimi.."

_Boy, things sure move fast,_ she thought to herself, feeling rather crest-fallen, but unsurprised. "Why?"

"I think I may have said stuff to her yesterday.." he muttered, scratching the side of his head. "Stuff that complicates.. _stuff._"

"Just do it, Taichi." She croaked, forcing a smile on her face. "It's Mimi-chan. Just be honest with her."

"Ahh.. yeah.." he agreed, nodding slowly. He looked at Sora and gave his gladdest of smiles. She smiles back, admitting she finally let him go.

* * *

The morning came quite pleasant for Mimi. She had gone drunk so many times back in New York that she had already perfected the hangover remedy – which consisted of alka-seltzer and heavy breakfast. Of course, she could not credit it all to herself, when Koushiro helped her out that night.

She looks behind him, still engrossed with his favorite object since they were children. Mimi wondered if she had said anything weird to Koushiro yesterday, because it seemed to her that he was avoiding her purposefully. That, or maybe she's just overthinking things.

_We did greet each other good morning earlier.._ she thought hopefully as she mindlessly flipped the pages of ViVi magazine. She ran across some dresses, which she ought Sora and Cat might like. There wasn't much that suited her taste.

Mimi didn't quite understand why they still had to go to school, since the teachers just usually give their papers and projects back to them. There were no lectures or tests anymore, too. Sighing, Mimi breathed deeply, turned around to face the redhead.

He didn't seem to take notice of her, so she cleared her throat. "Kou-kun, are you nervous?"

She realized he really didn't notice her after all, since his eyes seemed surprised to see her. "Ahh.. Is there a reason to be?"

"Well.. it'll be just the two of us now at high school," she said, hoping to fish out an answer she will like.

"Takeru-kun and Hikari-chan will be, too.." he replied nonchalantly, his eyes going back down to his laptop screen. She was about to make an obviously disappointed expression in her face, and he'd rather not see it.

"Well.." she didn't expect she'd run out of words that easily. "I just hope we can still be classmates.."

"I don't know," he paused, then looked back up to her again with a friendlier expression on his face. "I hope so, too."

It wasn't what she was hoping for, but it was enough. Mimi smiled back, then turned around, back to her magazine. It'll take a while to mend her relationship with Koushiro, but at least she knew he was also trying.

She took out her phone as she felt it vibrate from her breast pocket, her hands turning sweaty as she read the preview of the message:

_Meet me at the rooftop now._

It was from Taichi.

* * *

Mimi sighed, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. It was incredibly windy that it was hard to keep her skirt in place.

"What do you want from me, Yagami?" she demanded in good humor. She pretended she wasn't afraid of whatever the brunet on front of her had to say. Though, Mimi pretty much already had a good idea what it could be about.

"Mi," he signaled her to come over near the edge. Hesitantly she did, and took a few inches away from him.

"So.. what brings me here?"

Taichi sighed, running a hand through his hair. He inhaled, then exhaled deeply, and broke into a laugh. "Gaaaaaaaaaaaah. This is so hard!"

"Taichi-kun!"

"Do I leave you breathless right now?" he teased carelessly.

"Why yes you do, you're about to say something to me and it's keeping me in my toes," she replied rather harshly, now crossing her arms. Taichi felt she was really pissed, then sighed again, mustering the courage he had left.

"I'm sorry," he said, scratching his nape. He was looking down at his shoes, pretty interested at the dirt they had. "I'm sorry for everything."

And perhaps, this was not what Mimi actually expected, and suddenly felt guilty for him. She stepped forward, reaching out for his arm. "Why are you apologizing…"

He turned to face the scenery, where some iconic parts of Tokyo could be seen. From there he could see the train station. It reminded him a lot of Sora, where he and Sora will usually eat lunch together when Yamato was busy with his band members, and they'll count the number of times they will see a train pass them by. _I'll miss this place a lot.._ "I.. I made things.. complicated.."

"Between you and me.. between you and Sora.. between you and Koushiro.." he added. And in an instant, Mimi could feel her tears winning her over. "I'm just sorry it became this complicated, Mimi-chan."

She turned her head to the scenery as well, and did not speak. Taichi had said everything that made her exactly feel nowadays, and it hurt her for him to say it. She was unaware of the feeling until he gave words to it. Everything, _everything,_ was complicated since she got back here.

"But Mimi," he continued, now lightly placing his hand over hers. He turned her around to look at him. His determined eyes meeting her sad ones. He felt bad that she just had to get involved. But he was just never one to back out.

The school bell rang. It was lunchtime already.

"Mimi," he repeated, as his other hand was placed over his heart. He took a big gulp, his sweaty, rough hand slightly slipping its grip on hers. "I promise I will do everything I can to prove to you that my feelings are real."

They are real, Taichi could say. There was nothing to doubt that he does like her, and that he could love her – just as, or maybe more than he loved Sora. _Maybe?_ Maybe. "I know what you're thinking, that I'm just replacing you for Sora, but I do like you, truly.."

"I'm not pressuring you right now, or tomorrow, I just want you to know I'm here, and that I like you, and I will wait for you,"

_Since when was Taichi such a smooth talker?_ she thought to himself. All messed up with her tears and her hair, she couldn't help but nod vigorously, buying Taichi's words. She wiped her face with a handkerchief he lent to her, and then brushed her hair with her fingers. Her glistening eyes glared at him playfully.

"Taichi.. you idiot," she croaked in between her hiccups. "you didn't have to say sorry for this at all,"

She wouldn't say anymore, and just let it go naturally as it could – whatever she and Taichi are.

He laughed, relieved that they were okay.

"I'll see more of you this summer then," he noted. Mimi just smiled. He buried his hands inside his pockets, and put a very wide grin on his face.

"Okay. Now let's get lunch. I'm hungry."

They climbed down the rooftop hastily, and ordered their food before joining the others at their lunch table. Mimi ought Taichi will not want to miss this last time they'd all sit together. Things were changing pretty quickly, and it made her dizzy.

"Mimi-chan!" Mimi was glad that Sora had called her out. She reckoned Sora saved a seat for her, since the spot was empty. She sat beside her, as Taichi sat beside Koushiro.

"Where did you two go?!" mumbled Yamato angrily as he chewed from his ricebox. "Yagami, we have practice later and you're loitering around god-knows-where with Tachikawa, you sly fox,"

"None of your business, Ishida," Taichi was back to his playful self as he ate his noodles. It made Mimi think twice if it was really Taichi that she was with earlier. The two continued to banter as usual, as Koushiro silently ate in between them. Sora watched the three of them, and wondered if Koushiro will miss them.

"Kou-kun," she said, just after swallowing her roll of sushi from her bento. "do you want to come to my graduation dinner tomorrow?" offered Sora.

"What about me, Sora-chan," cued in Mimi, not wanting to be left out – but also ensuring she and Sora were okay.

The redhead giggled. "Mimi-chan, of course you're invited, silly,"

"Hey, what's this," butted in Taichi as he overheard the girls' conversation. "I have a graduation dinner too, you know."

"So do I," spoke Yamato. Although from the look of things, it seemed likely that both Koushiro and Mimi will prefer to go to Sora's. _Maybe I'd invite Jyou,_ he resorted.

"And are we – Mimi-chan and I – invited to this?" asked Koushiro indifferently.

The two other guys replied in unison. "Yes."

"Well now, I think we'll just see who goes to whom," replied Sora coolly. "Of course, I think it's obvious Mimi-chan will go to mine. And Jyou-senpai already accepted my invitation,"

With that, Koushiro had decided to come over to Sora's instead, but he chose to be silent; he'll just go over to her house and surprise her with her favorite chocolates as a congratulatory gift.

_Well, there goes my idea,_ said Yamato to himself. He concentrated in eating his rice instead.

"Sora," Taichi mumbled in his gnawing. "Sora. You're scary. And cool. Ugh. I guess I'll invite Daisuke over."

Mimi and Sora could not help but giggle at Taichi's ridiculous face of respect and admiration. "Thanks.. I guess?"

Mimi looked around, savoring this last time they'd all seat together. She wondered if they'd ever get to see them together like this again. Taking a huge bite from her tuna roll, she turned to Sora, eyeing her from her hair to her skirt.

"Sora-chan," Mimi frowned. "Where's your ribbon?"

The redhead looked onto her uniform, then back at Mimi. "I gave it to a junior from tennis club,"

"But.. but why!" she really wanted the ribbon to herself. It didn't matter if she was a girl asking for a ribbon – it was _Sora's._

"Uhh.. he asked?"

"_He?" _emphasized Koushiro.

"Mhmm."

"I thought you don't do buttons or ribbons," growled Taichi. "I was asking for yours!"

Sora glared at the brunet, hoping Mimi will not misunderstand. She groaned at how insensitive Taichi could be. "Well, we wouldn't want to upset Mimi-chan now don't we, Taichi-kun? H-hey Mimi-!"

Sora was cut off when Mimi suddenly tugged a button from her coat and kept it to herself. Quite shocked with the turn of events, Sora stared down at her now three-buttons coat, and then looked at her friend, who had already changed the direction of her interest to someone else.

"Yamato-kun!"

"What?" the blonde flatly murmured from his food.

"I want your second button."

"Why are you asking his button, when you wanted to return mine!" complained Taichi. He was really getting suspicious of Mimi's favoritism. But then again, maybe Mimi just wanted souvenirs from the three of them. Sora awkwardly turned to her food; Koushiro copied her.

"I don't do buttons, dear." replied Yamato coolly. Although, he was now starting to reconsider when she kept pleading for his button – she even attempted to forcefully remove it from his coat. It took Taichi and Sora to restrain Mimi.

"You're insane, Tachikawa," he said, frightened at the girl.

"But.. I have Taichi's.. and I have Sora's.. yours is the only one missing now!" It continued for a while, Mimi taking several attempts to get Yamato's second button. But to no avail, the blond just did not cater her wishes, and she eventually gave up.

_Maybe I'll try later.._ thought Mimi to herself. She was convinced that with a little more _force,_ Yamato would eventually give in.

The girls stood up from their seats, having already finished their light lunches. Mimi followed her best friend faithfully, admiring her from behind. Mimi knew every girl in her class, and had spent time with them, but time with Sora was her favorite. She was going to miss her a lot, and school was definitely not going to be the same without her. She was feeling extra clingy and touchy-feely, but knew Sora will find it weird.

"Sora-chan," she was leaning beside the cubicle that her friend was in. "do you think we can still spend time together?"

"What are you talking about, Mi-chan," Sora's voice echoed inside the cubicle. "Of course we can,"

"Am I still going to be your best friend?"

Sora couldn't help but giggle. "You're the one and only, Tachikawa Mimi!"

"Huuuuu.. I better be the only one! Do we still get to have sleepovers?"

"Of course."

"Do we still hang out after school?"

"Maybe? I will try my best!"

"What about on weekends? You have to promise me we still have our weekends!"

"Ehh.. I'm not sure about that, Mi. Sorry."

The brunette made a sound of frustration. "Do we still talk a lot even if you're very busy in college?"

The ginger giggled again. It was definitely a strange feeling, somehow having to part with Mimi for the second time. But the difference this time was that they're in each other's reach now. And that alone was enough. "Yes, Mimi-chan."

Mimi smiled, contented with her friend's answers until she remembered the most important one. "Sora-chan,"

"Yes, Mimi-chan?"

"I've been meaning to ask, but I keep forgetting," Mimi toyed with her hair, quite unsure how to put her question to words. "What are you taking in college? And which college are you going to?"

She opened the door, and looked at her clingy friend, somewhat wishing Mimi had the answer for the question she kept asking herself.

"_That_, I don't know."

* * *

The queue for the graduates was cut off in to nine different lines, students arranged in alphabetical order. Takeru peeped from behind, looking at Hikari who was at the other line, and fourth to the last of the entire litter; then to his left, two persons away from him was where Daisuke is.

The roll call had started, starting from A. There were a lot of students whose last names started with A's. In fact, they were the populous ones, according to Takeru's personal observation. It had been quite a day, and he was getting hungry.

"Takaishi-san, where are you going to high school?" asked a female schoolmate. She had jet-black hair and green eyes.

"Odaiba, Shiguhara-san." He grinned politely. He saw a rather disappointed look on her face, and tells him something about her preferring to go a school somewhere in Ginza. Unable to keep up the small talk and niceties, he did not reply anymore to her, and just gave her an "Ah" and an unmeant smile.

It worked. Maybe if he was in a different mood, he could have entertained her.

The whole time the practice had gone over, he thought of his future with Hikari and Daisuke. They will be joining Miyako soon in Odaiba High School, but he knew it was an entirely different world – probably not so much of a big deal like college – but it was still a different world that even he just got familiar with, thanks to those abundant shonen and slice of life mangas he had read for the entirety of his life.

Will it be like that shoujo manga, where he might find a new prospective lover while still being best of friends with Hikari? Or will it be something rekindling of his former fancy?_ No.._ 'former fancy' was not the right term. The unnatural rhythm of his heart upon thinking her name proves that he still likes her.

_"Motomiya Daisuke,"_

He watched Daisuke climb up the platform, obviously unhappy to be there. Daisuke was cheered by some members of the football club and tennis club. Takeru wondered too if he and Daisuke will remain friends – his maroon-haired friend might find someone better, someone more tolerable than his own smarty-ass, and it scared him a bit.

_"Takaishi Takeru,"_

When Takeru's turn came as his name rolled off of the principal's tongue, a loud scream of fellow school girls and hollering from the boys echoed the hall. He feigned a friendly smile, not wanting to look too snobbish or whatever, and this pleased them. He thought of doing a little personality makeover himself once he gets into high school. Probably become slightly less friendly; the people-pleasing had taught him loads. He stepped down the platform, then resumed to his place in the queue.

They had finally reached the last line; each mention of a name had gotten Hikari closer to him. He looks at her, gives her a reassuring smile.

She smiles back. But that wasn't all.

"Takeru-kun," she said, bursting with enthusiasm. "I think I understand what you said yesterday."

Surprised, he narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"It's a self-preservation kind of thing, isn't it?" she answered in a playful, but inherently sarcastic manner.

"I think you missed the point, Hikari-chan," he smiled, trying to maintain an amicable conversation since other students could hear them.

"Hmm.." She looked up, pretending to think. He realized soon enough he wasn't able to assure her. "Like you said.. _it's not a big deal_."

He could not help but glare at her, despite knowing this was entirely his own doing. But then again, it was the price of telling the truth.

Things will change.

_"Yagami Hikari,"_

* * *

_First Day of Summer_

_._

_._

Mimi stared down at the item on her palm, having mixed feelings about it. "Ishida Yamato, is this a confession?"

"Maybe," The blond snickered as he leaned on the railings; they were at the same spot that overlooked Rainbow Bridge. He didn't really know why he kept dragging her here; it just went by instinct. His smile widened when he noticed the blush on Mimi's cheeks.

"And this _button_, is very, very, late!"

"I would have given it to you if you had come to my graduation dinner last night," he said in a fake-gloomy manner, since she chose to go to Sora's dinner instead.

But in the end, Mimi was always immune to his charm. Her eyes shot up to his. "You're terrible. You're teasing me. I hate you,"

"What. You asked for it, I just gave it to you." He said, dropping his act.

"I was joking!"

"You were whining why I won't give away any of my buttons," he explained, feigning innocence in his voice. Mimi had been stalking him around the campus a day ago, even attempting to grab the button of his coat when he was walking on the hallway.

"You even attacked me. You seemed to be the one interested in me, and not me on you."

"But I feel like you're only giving this to me because you can't give it to Sora-chan," she dramatized as she leaned on the fence. It mattered greatly if the button was really meant for her or not.

"Now you don't want it?"

"I want it! But.."

Yamato could not deny he enjoyed torturing Mimi's funny emotions. And so, he went on: "Well.. I would have given it to her if.. if we were okay."

"I'm crying inside."

He laughed at her sulking face.

"I wanted your button because I feel like I deserved it!" Mimi made a pose as if she'd break into a song at any moment, and Yamato couldn't help but retaliate and avoid being part of her musical.

"Can't you see, Yamato-kun, years ago we barely exchanged a syllable, and now look at us – sharing a selfie, even." Mimi pointed out to her phone, showing a photo of her smiling, and Yamato frowning.

Yamato unconsciously copied the frown. "Delete that, Mimi. I look terrible there."

But she ignored him and went on. "You have to admit, this is the best friendship you had since Taichi. Hell, I'm better than Taichi."

"You're crazy."

"I can't accept this half-meant button!"

"Get over it," he hissed. "You should feel lucky, you have Taichi's too." It was actually this little detail which made him succumb to Mimi's silly antics. But Mimi felt not even a tad bit lucky, as she knew the reason behind Taichi's button. She didn't say anything back, and eventually accepted Yamato's trinket.

"That other night," Yamato pulled himself away from the bar, motioning Mimi to walk with him. She followed him without question. "You told Taichi I was your type,"

It didn't take any hesitation for her to answer. "I did."

_So blunt,_ he thought, rolling his eyes to the side.

"You're not in love with me, right?" he prompted. The question almost made Mimi trip. She adjusted her left shoe, which she almost left behind.

"What the – hell no! I said that because technically you're a band dude, Ishida." she snapped, her hands resting on her hips as her foot regained balance. Her lips form a pout, her hazel orbs eyeing his blessed height. "God, your ego is the size of a cathedral,"

"Just checking," said Yamato coolly as he continued walking. "Takeru thinks there's something between us."

She hastened her footsteps, trying to match his speed until they were side by side again. "He always thinks something's between us. You should get used to it until you find yourself a girlfriend in college,"

"Yeah.." _Maybe it couldn't be helped,_ he thought. Merely putting Mimi beside him was enough to make people assume they're an item. Yamato then realized that he never saw them together on front of a mirror yet – and front-cameras on phones just don't count.

"Hmm…" Mimi tucked a lock of her hair on her ears, carefully picking her words. "Say, Yamato-kun.."

He did not look over her direction, allowing her to speak up whatever that was on her mind. But of course, he did not expect what she had to say next.

"Do you think we'll still be as close as we are once you go to college?" The question sent electricity in his entire spine, still not used to her honesty. "Do you think we can still hang out together?"

He ran a hand through his hair, struggling to keep the icy exterior and not give into her sentimentality.

"Tachikawa, you really scare me off with your bluntness," he said, taking a deep breath.

"I can't help it.. I'd die knowing!" she moaned. He glanced at her, finding her grimacing face funny.

"We will be.." he said in a lower volume as flashbacks of shared experiences together came to him. This year has been proving quite tough on him; he thought he had only managed because of his really good friends – and Mimi… _Mimi, Mimi, Mimi, Mimi_, dear Mimi, was one of the most important additions to his surprisingly short list of good friends.

He wondered for a bit, what could have happened if she wasn't there, or if she didn't trust him – if things from four months ago remained status quo.

"I promise." When he said those two words, Mimi could not help but smile so widely. Her cheeks warmed up, and so did her heart.

This friendship with him was one of the best things that happened since she came back to Japan. With all the drama with used-to-be-closer friends like Taichi and Koushiro, Yamato filled in their shoes. He often kept her from being reckless – and when she _does_ become so, he looked out for her.

She reached over to the calmer character beside her, and locked her arms around his waist, since going for his shoulders were hard due to his tall physique. She could not help but cry out of happiness.

It caught him off-guard, but he couldn't help but feel delighted at her outright genuineness; so he returned the gesture back, and almost felt teary. _Almost._

He pulled away, playfully messed with her hair as they both resumed walking, heading over to Takeru's house for his graduation dinner.

"So Yamato-kun, what do you think is the weirdest thing that has happened to you this year so far?" she asked out of nowhere.

"Umm.." There really wasn't much_ 'weird' _going on in his life so far, just a lot of 'sad'. But if there had to be one –

Yamato continued, "Umm.. I met a band named Icky Pantsuits?"

"Ehh." she stuck her tongue out, repulsed. "Okay, yeah. That's not weird. That's just a very terrible choice of a band name." She said making a face. She was sort of hoping he'd answer _'being friends with you, Mimi'_, and he didn't; she lost interest and changed the subject immediately. "So, Yamato-kun, I was thinking of going to the beach with everyone this summer,"

He watched the girl beside him talk about her summer plans with them, getting lost in his own head. He couldn't help but let out a heartily laugh which confused her. Soon, they entered the train station, both growing hungry from all the feet exercise.

"Gah. Yamato-kun, let's stop by a vending machine later," she said, sitting on an empty spot on the train. "I need _Pocari Sweat_ or something,"

He stood on front of her, a single hand of his clutching the handle. He admired their camaraderie, their closeness, now only realizing that finally she was in his life.

"You're weird." It felt good to be in hers, too.


	19. Friday

**Author's Note:** Thanks to everyone who are continuing to support this story, you guys are the best!It was rather hard to write this, since this story is now transitioning to a new level of drama. Would like to tell everyone that since things have been still quite busy, my priorities are my Mimato stories. Though, I am preparing another Taiora one-shot, soon. Enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**Salad Days**

Chapter Nineteen  
_Friday_

_._

_._

The brunet gripped his vibrating mobile phone, very much tempted to throw it on the wall. Taichi shut his eyes hard, hoping he'd go back to slumberland before this dreaded day.

"Onii-chan," Hikari stood on front of his brother, damped and cladded in a pink towel. "We're going to be late,"

Of course, Taichi wasn't moving, pretending he was still asleep.

"Onii-chan," she called out again. Hikari checked her fingertips for any residue of dirt, then combed her hair. And when her brother did not budge, She reached for the curtains and pulled them to the side. Light beamed through the windows, illuminating the dark, crammy room. She was rather surprised at the reams of paper on his study table.

"God! Hikari!" cried out Taichi as he pulled over the covers to protect himself from the blinding lights. He was panicking internally, remembering he had recitation on his Political Theory 1 class today. It was the start of a love-hate relationship with Fridays.

Hikari swore she jumped a little, slightly frightened on this very rare occasion in which her brother blew up on her. Nonetheless, she continued on.

"We promised mom we'll bring over some of the pie to grandma today," she said, exiting the room. Before closing the door, she added, "Mom won't be happy when she comes up here to fetch you,"

He sat right up from his bed, eyes squinting as he closed the curtains. He looked at his phone, got a message from Sora telling him to return her sports knapsack he borrowed; saw that he had set an alarm for another power study before going to school. He had failed to wake up on the set alarm.

It had been a month since college life had started. Taichi was accepted at Tokyo University, and now pursuing Political Science, just as he planned. Things have been bearable, but some particular subjects made him wish he was taking Archaeology instead. Todai was known for its humanities department, and the faculty of Political Science was packed with famous professionals – lawyers and former government officials, specifically. Most of his instructors seemed to take a fancy at him – always picked on him randomly. He didn't know if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Taichi stood up, did some warm-ups and brief exercises before heading to the bathroom as he recited some random terms along with their definitions out loud. He couldn't help but throw in a few curses, too. If there was any consolation for the day, he'd see Mimi later.

Stepping out of the shower, he dressed himself like a respectable liberal arts man – suit and tie as obliged by his professor during recitation day. He gathered all the clutter in his desk, surprising himself a little that he actually reads now – and started questioning more about his surroundings and society than he did. Things back then were only black and white, now he was seeing several shades of gray. _Since when did I become so pensive?_

Slightly paranoid he might get sued for saying the wrong answer (or anything politically incorrect), he was mastering the art of tiptoeing around people as well.

* * *

'_What to do for today?'_ was the daily challenge Sora was facing since she graduated from high school. Despite passing Economics, she didn't join Taichi in the liberal arts at Todai. Grabbing the half-full carton of milk from the fridge, she poured some for herself on her mug and settled on the couch as she opened the television. After a satisfying gulp from her mug, she also dipped some whole-grained biscuits with it. This has been her breakfast for almost a week and a half.

The weird diet started from the beach-and-barbecue vacation last month. Since then, she had lost control of pigging out 'til one of her favorite pairs of shorts started to feel a bit too tight. She wasn't really one to follow a diet since she had tennis to burn calories – but no longer having her own court to play on, she diverted her interests to sewing, kendo, flower arranging, yoga, baking (which Sora refuses for a second attempt due to an oven accident), and recently, trekking.

"Sora," it was none other than her dear mother, whom Sora ought was just behind her. She always had a knack for sneaking up on people.

Here comes the dreaded question, "what are you planning to do today?"

"I don't know," it was always her answer, and it was the truth. Not knowing what to do for the day 'til noontime was the new normal for her. From her peripheries, she felt her mom, cladded in a vintage yukata, sit beside her.

"Do you want to call your dad to pick you up?"

Turning her attention from the TV to her mother, Sora, with groggy eyes, politely shook her head, trying her best not to show a hint of irritation. She just wanted to enjoy her breakfast, _goddamn it_. "No need for you to send me off to Kyoto, _oka-san._"

Mrs. Takenouchi felt otherwise, but decided to hold her concern. "Well, at least do something productive later, okay?" Mrs. Takenouchi insisted, slightly worried. "I'm going to the shop. If you don't have anything else better to do.."

"I know.." she cut off, already knowing what her mom will say. A morning like this one was becoming a usual scene for her. "I will,"

Mrs. Takenouchi left the house to tend the shop downstairs, leaving the ginger back in her zone. Biting off of her biscuit while watching the morning news report, her mind wandered off to find her agendum for the day.

_Something physical? Maybe try kickboxing – karate even?_ Stretching her resting body on the couch, she felt a slight pain on her lower back, a sign that she was yet to recover from her adventure at the Five Lakes of Mount Fuji last weekend. _No to sports, then._ Sora didn't regret though; conquering the mountain was her greatest achievement yet.

She thought of continuing the sweater she was knitting, or try to paint something which hopefully won't turn out to be a Pollock painting again. Carefully sitting up from the furniture, the ginger groaned out of frustration. Things weren't going according to plan.

Checking out her phone, she received a message from Mimi, who was hoping to meet up with her tomorrow; a message from Taichi said he'd drop by their flower shop this weekend; there was also a message from Jyou, whom had apologized for sleeping in on her last night. Letting herself fall back on the couch, Sora let out a deep sigh.

Maybe she should have just went to Todai, and wouldn't have to worry about her future like she's doing right now. She was fairly smart and good with numbers and money, too. But no – here was the class salutatorian, being a complete bum while everyone else continued on with their studies.

_But,_ she thought, _I'd hate myself forever if I end up on a corporate job._ Not for long her thoughts drifted to Taichi and Yamato, and how initially, the three of them were supposed to go to Todai together. Maybe things would have mended between her and Yamato, either patch up or become friends – or maybe she and Taichi might just find the right timing again. Maybe she wouldn't have felt so alone, for caring a great deal.

The battle between her heart and her head continued on for a while, until she decided to take it out on her sewing kit instead.

* * *

It was always in Yamato's belief that there is no rest for the wicked. He could no longer enjoy Fridays like he used to, and appreciated Tuesdays instead due to his schedule. Here he was, stuck in the library early Friday morning.

He was relaxing his head on the counter, waiting for the very slow clerk-also-student-assistant to bring his five-pages-long essay to him.

"Who took this kid to work here?" Yamato heard a croaky and irritated female voice from behind. He looked over his shoulder, noticing that the queue was seven persons long, and he was the first in line. He checked his newly-acquired wristwatch that came from his mom as a graduation gift; it had been more than five minutes since he gave his USB drive.

As soon as the clerk returned from the machine with the freshly printed paper, Yamato sped out of the library, hurrying for the first coffee shop he'd see on the way. He barely had enough sleep since Monday, having been bombarded with assignments from the only non-course related class, Philosophy 1. He had just finished cramming his Maoism essay which he admittedly enjoyed writing amidst the three math and two science classes he was currently attending.

Passing by his building, Yamato couldn't help but let out a sparse breath, slightly not too fond of Natural History or Physics 1. He wasn't so sure if it was the too-serious subject, or his very monotonous associate professor that made the class almost unbearable. Yamato, like most of his classmates, learned more about how she got her master's degree than the Newtonian tale of the apple.

He had to admit, he became distant since he got into Todai, barely spending time with friends, even with Jyou and Taichi whom shared the same campus with him. But it wasn't because he was brooding which Mimi and Taichi kept suggesting.

_I'm just so busy._

Somehow, he could now fully understand what Jyou had been going through last year.

Arriving at the said shop, he threw himself on an empty couch, along with his things, savoring the empty space before it gets crowded. The soft guitar music playing at the café made him miss playing with his band, especially with the new songs they made this summer. He remembered Mimi commenting on how sentimental his new songs were; especially the six-minute song which she (and Takeru) reckoned was all about her. Some of the lyrics, like "girl in pink with a green thumb", "wide-eyed dreamer devoured by nightmares in a city that never sleeps", "she came home to find herself" probably gave it away, but of course he denied their rather correct assumption.

It was just that writing about Mimi's life from an onlooker's perspective amused him so; much more interesting than his former relationship, or his personal issues. Surprisingly, he spent time with her this summer a lot. They even almost got stranded on their way back home from Nagano, if not for Jyou picking them up from the highway. And weird enough, it did bring him back to Takeru's favorite question –

_No, of course not, silly. It's Mimi. It's just Mimi._

Like a little sister that he never had, or a girl best friend that he platonically loved. God, with the way things are going so candidly between them, he reckoned he had seen more faces of her than Sora or Taichi ever did – and some sides of her can be really off-putting. No, he will definitely not be Mimi's summer fling.

It was just Mimi. Of course, that won't stop him from asking her to go with him somewhere. Taking out his mobile phone, he greeted her good morning, followed by a request to accompany him to the music bar later. Maybe she'd help him with this _burning out _phase he was going through.

No, he wasn't feeling guilty about it. He had no motives. Taichi knows this, and so do Sora and the others. Him and Mimi? No way.

_Impossible.._ No way.. _Right?_ He shook his head, groaning over the ridiculous thought. He was way _over_ that.

_Well,_ to his defense, each of the songs he wrote was actually about every one of them, and that doesn't make Mimi any more special than the others. _Stupid Takeru._

The longest song was probably about his subtle psychoanalysis on Takeru; the weirdest and most experimental one was about his relationship with Sora and Taichi, and the hardest song he had written was about himself (pre and post-jumping on Tokyo Bay), which also turned out to be the best. Yamato couldn't help but yearn to hold his guitar, and probably use the fountain pen he was holding for writing songs than doing Advanced Algebra 1.

He couldn't help but question. _Why was I here, again?_

Now with his textbook spread wide on the table, he mindlessly switched on his calculator, and started to solve some equations while imagining Koushiro being enthusiastic with this kind of thing. None of them were really that hard, he just found – all of it – _tedious_.

He was about to cram in his homework when Mimi replied that she can't go with him; that she promised to meet up with Taichi later. Though a bit disappointed, he smiled, happy that things seemed to be going well among his friends.

_Oh, well._ Sighing, Yamato toyed with the gadget, wondering for a while if he'd eventually be able to find beauty in whatever he was doing. Like an answered prayer, his train of thought was put to a stop when his drummer messaged him about an emergency gig for tonight.

* * *

"Well, isn't this painful," muttered Jyou's seatmate, who goes by Akiyoshi Kira. The dark blue-haired lad nodded out of politeness, already used to her bluntness. She reminded him of Mimi a lot.

He turned his eyes back to the screen, as they were all watching a short documentary about introductory microbiology. It was something even kindergarteners would understand, sometimes the narrator becoming too silly for using words such as "_germs"._

"This video sounds more of a soap commercial," whispered Jyou to Kira. The brunette giggled at his remark, started to draw random paisley patterns that looked similar to microorganisms on her notebook. He admiringly watched the blot of ink turn into a doodle, impressed with the accurate illustration of the common flu virus cell.

His eyes turned back to the screen, somehow found a weird connection between water-bred viruses and his last summer vacation. Mimi's beach-outing-also-birthday-bash had made him realize Mimi and Yamato's friendship increasingly and peculiarly becoming intimate, just as his own friendship with Sora.

It had troubled him a bit, since usually Sora would mostly be at Taichi's or Mimi's sides.

_Yamato, too, though they've broken up for good, _he thought. Though, Jyou did assume that the two would still have remained friends even if the relationship has ended. _That's sad.._

But the last time the group hung out, the ginger sat beside him instead of Mimi. He had heard of the breakup, but it didn't really matter to him 'til last month. And Taichi, _what on earth was going on between Taichi and Mimi,_ was something Jyou found worrisome. He thought maybe it was just because he wasn't there to see it bloom - but being kept in the dark (although Jyou purposefully did it to himself), was something he did not like. Things between his friends have increasingly changed, and he had not even noticed while all of it transpired.

Probably, what kept bugging him since his the beginning of his term was the distance between everyone else. Takeru and Hikari, Mimi and Koushiro, Taichi and Koushiro, Taichi and Sora – he may not be there with them when all of those things happened, but this was the first thing he noticed since they first met that summer.

Shaking his head, Jyou turned to look at Kira, who had already finished drawing the rest of the empty corners and edges of the page.

"Looks good, isn't it?" she whispered proudly.

Jyou smiled, thought she'd do great in their illustration class next term. She nailed every muscle and sinew of the human anatomy, something he still couldn't get right.

"Do you want to grab some lunch later?" Friends. New friends, friends he'd see, friends he'd be able to talk to about amoebas, white blood cells, and homework – he needed them more than ever.

She smiled back, nodded her head. She was the first addition of Jyou's newly-found friends. "Okay."

* * *

Looking at the mirror, she thought how washed out she appeared in the sky blue uniform. Putting a small plastic clip on the side of her head, she went out of the lavatory to join Mimi and the others for lunch.

High school was tolerable for Hikari, so far. She had been well-acquainted with everyone in class, except for some of the girls. She reckoned it might be because the boys in class were very friendly with her.

Apart from planning to join the newspaper club as photographer, she didn't set any other goal for herself, just wanting to focus on studying and getting into a prestigious university_. In other words_, a boring and drama-free high school. But the peace she was seeking out was slowly slipping out of her hands, especially with her weird relationship with Takeru right now.

Their trip to the beach last summer proved to be difficult to be around each other. But she and Takeru knew better – and had to fake that everything between them was all right, before their brothers or Sora might start noticing. The change does not become noticeable, not until when they're left alone together.

That their duo was inseparable had been finally disproven. Takeru was at the other class, surprisingly with Ichijouji Ken, while she and Daisuke shared the same one.

She smudged her lip balm across, then smacking her lips. Just because they were in different classes now didn't mean she wouldn't see him every day – and thank God for Mimi and Koushiro, who were both were carrying on the _tradition_.

Arriving at the canteen with her own packed lunch, she scanned the room to look for the others; saw Mimi waving at her.

"Hikari-chan," the longer-haired brunette called Hikari out, signaled her to their table as Koushiro, Takeru, Daisuke, Ken, and Miyako sat with her. Accidentally meeting Takeru's subtle eyes, she awkwardly smiled, and went her way towards the group, sat beside Mimi.

"Hikari-chan, do you want to come with me later?" Mimi muffled from her sushi.

Before Hikari could reply, she took a huge bite from the raw fish. "Aren't you supposed to meet onii-chan later?"

The older brunette glanced at Koushiro eating his lunch, and he remained quiet as usual, uninterested of whatever they were talking about.

"Ahhh.." Mimi couldn't help but gape, as nothing but dry air came out of her mouth. No, she didn't forget she'd supposed to meet with Taichi later – rather, something else was on her mind. It had almost been two months since they both decided to give a test run, but the anxiety never left her. In result, she had been secretly sneaking out to the bar; loosening up a bit, minus the nicotine and stuff – already well-acquainted with the local bands around.

Of course, only Takeru knows this secret life of hers. It happened just one summer night, when he was merely accompanying his brother to their gig. He saw a poorly-disguised Mimi talking to a female bartender. Surprisingly, Mimi took her alcohol well that night. Of course, after she found out he was there all along, she panicked when he told her Yamato's band will play – immediately leaving the bar. Which now comes to Takeru's mind..

_Is Mimi planning to take Hikari there?! _Subtly glancing at the older brunette across the table, their eyes met for a while, as if passing a wordless secret.

Averting her eyes from Takeru to her lunch, Mimi let out a reply in a small, quiet voice. "I do.."

"Hmm. I hope you don't take this wrongly, Mimi-san," MIyako said while biting off of her cracker. "I always thought Taichi-san liked Sora-san."

"Gee, Miyako, not all people should end up with their first loves," argued Daisuke. He felt unusually emotional over his statement.

"I'm just stating the obvious!"

"It _was_ obvious. Now it isn't." said Ken, whom had his hair recently trimmed.

Mimi watched Daisuke and Miyako argue about first loves, second loves; heard Taichi's, Sora's, and Yamato's names mentioned. She wondered, if all of this would come to eventually pass, if everyone would forget, if she would eventually believe that Taichi does have feelings for her –

"You should all stop talking about this," piped in Koushiro with a stern yet friendly tone. He had just finished his lunch. "Mimi-chan's here."

To Mimi, one thing was for certain – she didn't deserve Koushiro's feelings. _So how can I deserve Taichi?_

Koushiro stood up from his seat, leaving, while Daisuke and Miyako muttered their apologies. Ken, Takeru and Hikari, whom both sensed it was an awkward topic over lunch, focused on eating their food.

Mimi tried to eat hers as well, but had lost her appetite halfway. Now she felt guiltier, having been reminded of dear Koushiro's feelings. She drifted, with the little voice in her head whispering things that made her want to run away and forget.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I don't know if medicine students really have an illustration class, but I personally thought it was such a cute idea. Hehe. Will appreciate your reviews, and I'll try my best to reply to all your PMs this weekend. :)


	20. Coming of Age

**Author's Note: **I deeply apologize for the messages I haven't replied. I'm truly sorry for that, I know I've promised last chapter that I would, but it just had been so busy. Setting that aside, I enjoyed writing this chapter, and I think the next ones will be more interesting, too. I can only say that things are going to start getting intimate and more focused on our beloved Chosen Children. Anyway, here's chapter twenty, enjoy!

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty  
_Coming of Age_

_._

_._

It wasn't that she was going to ditch Taichi. And that's why she's here with him at the nearest ramen stall outside Todai. Though, she wished Taichi afforded more than ramen…

_Yamato took me for yakiniku_, she bitterly thought.

He looked surprisingly amazing in a suit, noted Mimi. She couldn't help but try to guess the designer brands from Taichi's oxfords to his dark blue suit and semi-silky black tie. He had his hair swept back, almost making him unrecognizable, and she felt absolutely estranged. He looked mature, adult – in a good way – like those teen, set-in-New York dramas she used to watch back in America.

At least he looks handsome, she thought.

"Quit gawking, Mimi," he laughed in between his chewing; almost spitting on her face. She immediately turned her head away, her illusion of Taichi being a gentleman, shattering.

"Must you know, Yagami, you look terrible. It's not you." She went back to her ramen, played the egg around the soup.

"Oh, you're mean. Hikari thought I looked cool."

"It's probably because your hair didn't look like a mop,"

She earned a glare. "Why are you being really extra mean today?"

Mimi whiffed her hair, let out a playful, "hmp."

He watched her eat her ramen in amusement as he slyly grinned. He no longer resented having to wear the suit despite his sweating – the suit was working its magic, and all was well.

Taichi cleared his throat, "So, how was your day?"

"It's all fine.." To Mimi, today was nothing more than boring. "I'm finishing English early this term."

Taichi smiled. "You can do that in high school?"

"Apparently I've been acing all the tests,"

"Overqualified for the standards of public school, I see,"

He gulped from his sake before he could add, "You don't have the perfect diction anymore though,"

"Yeah, Michael and Cat tease me about this _Engrish_ I have,"

"Are Japanese people really that bad in English?"

"Umm.. most of them, I'm afraid."

He bit his lip, looked far off at the end of the street. He didn't know what to say. What followed next were another few minutes of silence. Taichi had noticed that this was how their conversation flowed. Why someone so loud such as Mimi could be just as quiet as Yamato or Koushiro was beyond him. If anything, he expected he and Mimi would be the loudest couple ever. _Am I doing a bad job?_

"Do you have plans tomorrow?"

"Well..." She does have one, although it was yet to be confirmed. "I was hoping Sora and I would go out tomorrow,"

"Oh, awesome," replied Taichi, his smile gone wider. "I'm gonna meet up with her this Sunday."

"Why?"

"I think she wants to catch up. Also, I need to return her knapsack,"

"I see…"

_Just as I thought_, she told herself. If there was anything holding her back, it was this. It had already been two months, and apart from the growing intimacy between them, some cuddling then kisses, there was nothing much to expect. Slurping her last strands of noodles, she closed her eyes, silently hoping he'd reassure her – finally say those three words. He didn't.

"Done eating? Let's get you home now," he said. She responded with a quick nod.

_Oh, well. Maybe next time, _she thought to herself.

Mimi could not remember what happened next – only that she and Taichi parted with a kiss at the train station, his figure disappearing as he entered the infrastructure. Turning her back, she cozied herself with her coat, lit a stick of _Bat._

Her sigh came out with smoke that was surprisingly almost scentless. She took another whiff, and another, and another – eventually realizing that the taste came off uneven.

_No wonder dad likes this,_ she thought. She buried her other hand deep in her trench coat's pocket, walked through the autumn night with her mind somewhere else.

Mimi ended up where she exactly she wished to be, and with a bottle of vodka in between her fingers. Her face, now pancaked with makeup, turned around to see anyone familiar. The moment she saw a speck of blond hair made her heart skip, so she tugged her coat, went to the farthest, darkest corner in the room.

It had been this way most Fridays; since she and Taichi started _seeing_ each other, she had increasingly felt happier, and at the same time guiltier for Koushiro and her own best friend. They were kind enough to give their blessing, and had been supportive of them – repeatedly telling her that they only want _dear Mimi-chan's happiness._

But it echoed to her every time.

She wasn't stupid; she knew what they were truly feeling, and irritated her that they were so goddamn selfless, and she wished she could do the same. She didn't deserve what they're giving to her – this shot of a happy romance. And only recently had the reality been sinking, despite her belief that she didn't deserve Taichi at all. Though she couldn't deny that she loved his attention and adoration, she wanted him to love her; more importantly, she was heavily counting on him to save her.

But he wasn't her hero, and she wished she realized it sooner.

"_Oh-hey-yo!" _

Her head sharply turned to the stage, saw a man with electric green hair about to sing a song she was very familiar with. The man was skinny and pale, but he had a very smooth tenor voice that attracted the crowd. And she wanted to stand up as well, but she found her feet immobile.

Mimi could only judge from the back of the room, waiting for any confirmation it was actually him. And the confirmation did not take too long, when he started to sing in perfect English, covering a British band that only she and _him_ were familiar with. In his performance, he kept switching between perfect English and _Engrish_; ridiculing the usual Japanese pronunciations for fun. He tried very hard to be cool, but it paid off, seeing how the crowd went along with him.

Flashbacks during their time together at Brooklyn and Hell's Kitchen came into mind; those times when she finally got so fed up, when mom and dad – dear _Satoe_ and_ Keisuke – _had already planned to leave New York for Boston in six months.

It wasn't that much of a big move, but she never had the chance to resent them for having to leave Tokyo in the first place –

And so, everything else that time came like a dream, an exploration of what _mom _and_ dad_ would hate. Her memories were plagued with a dark, familiar alley, where they spent so much time opening small packets of white powder; then a shady, dimly-lit garage where they'd consume it. Afterwards he'd play music or she'd give in to her own craving, and he'd welcome it with pleasure. It went on routinely, and it definitely made _mom_ and_ dad _go nuts when they could not find her in her bed; and it was just enough to delay their departure, until her sanity and her conscience could no longer keep up.

Mimi poured herself some vodka, remembered her seventeenth birthday with everyone during the last summer, which reminded her she was still barely legal for any of this.

She noticed how his music never changed. And although she was quite sure she had moved on from him, she could not help but feel her heart ache, that he happened to be beside her at one of the worst and trying times of her life. She wondered if he had changed as well.

"I'm Yoshioka Aoiyami, and this is my band," It was indeed him, and it had been more than two years since she got picked up by the NYPD and been put to rehab.

"Y-Yoshi -_-_" she turned around to see whom had just placed their hand on her shoulder.

"Mimi-chan?" Takeru's smiling face instantly turned into a frown, upon seeing Mimi's pale, startled face. "You look like you've seen a ghost,"

"I think I may have," She took a huge gulp from her drink, still unsettled. It took her a while look straight at the boy. "What brings you here? I didn't bring Hikari-chan, if you're worried about that,"

The boy awkwardly smiled. There was some truth in Mimi's supposition, but it wasn't the entirety of why he's here.

"Aniki's backstage," he answered, trying to find Mimi's line of vision earlier. "…is something wrong?"

"We're sort of new here, so please treat us nicely, Tokyo!" said Yoshio from the microphone. Mimi took another gulp from her drink, before replying.

"No."

But Takeru had already found the subject of Mimi's eyes. _Him?_ He had met the vocalist of 'what's-that-gross-band-name' earlier, and had heard of his brother obsessing over the dude during band practice just this afternoon. Based on his subtle observations backstage, the green-haired man seemed like someone who spent an awful time overseas, and he was very cheerful and friendly.

"Do you know him?"

"He's my ex,"

He couldn't buy it. He gave a stern look. "For real?"

"Yeah.." Embarrassed, she lowered her head, her form shrinking. "New York."

"I see.. You left this story out from me, Mimi-chan."

"Sorry, Takeru-kun."

It wasn't that he was judgmental (although more often he considered himself to be so), but Takeru could not help but take note of the age gap. "He looks –"

"— old. He should be twenty-one now, I think," she said, smiling unusually. "Say, you want to go out somewhere?"

He wasn't interested in getting wasted, and he had already heard of his brother's songs. So Takeru immediately agreed, seeing there was nothing much to do. "Just wait a bit,"

Mimi nodded, now emptying her bottle. "Don't tell your brother I'm here."

Takeru went off for a bit to meet his brother backstage._ Does this make me nosy?_ He wondered. If it did, he couldn't help it, he was absolutely curious, and he was dying to know if this was the pathetically covered-up story that his brother kept talking about.

After a few minutes, Takeru came back, already wearing his coat. He urged Mimi to go out before his brother's band might go on stage. With one last look at the musician, her former lover, Mimi turned around, as both she and Takeru hurried out of the bar. They both spent idling outside, wondering if they should go get coffee or pizza.

"I haven't eaten yet," he said. Mimi checked her wallet out, if she'd still be able to afford pizza.

"Pizza it is."

"So.."

"Hmm?"

"That guy.. your ex, huh?"

"We met through Mike and Cat."

Mimi spent the whole time re-telling the tale to Takeru while they took the long stroll to the pizza parlor. Takeru had been silent most of the time, yet amused with Mimi and her secret rebellious side. He eventually found out details that made would have made his jaw drop to the floor, but held back as it would have been rude.

"I see. That's was wild," he said, chuckling. It wasn't until now he realized that there were more stories Mimi can to tell, and to his opinion, they were the good ones.

Mimi was caught off guard, surprised that he wasn't shocked, and that he didn't give her any hugs. He didn't sympathize with her, either. She took another cigarette, lit it, and put it in between her lips.

The fact that Takeru also didn't react to her smoking made her wonder.

"Golden Bat," noted Takeru.

"It's my dad's."

"Since when did you smoke?"

"Since when did you drink? Aren't you.. what, fourteen?"

"I don't, and I was with aniki, Mimi-chan. Also, you forgot that I just had my birthday two weeks ago," _Although aniki's not past the drinking age yet.._

She looked down from his shoes up to his hair, noticed how grown-up he looked. This actually annoyed her a bit, since not only he looked more mature than her – he acted that way too, and she wished she had the same sensibility as his when she was fourteen-or-fifteen.

"Did you know that those are favorites of famous old men, like Dazai and Akutagawa?" said Takeru in amusement.

"Hmmm."

"They're writers,"

"I know who they are, Takeru-kun."

"They also say that people who smoke the Bat are yearning for something,"

"Excuse me?"

_Where on earth did that came from?! _She was aware of Takeru's advanced mind but _damn, that was so on point. _"I only took these from my dad's drawer,"

"Just saying." The blond smiled. It was definitely a side of her that he didn't know – and he knew very well it wasn't the smoking part. Mimi had feelings that no one knew until now – and they begged to come out, be accepted, and be exhausted, just so they can be renewed – and he wished he could do the same with his own. "I'm here for you, Mimi-chan."

Her lips pursed into a smile. "You are so much like your brother,"

"And you're pretty much not the same Mimi I knew thirty minutes ago,"

"So… do you hate it?"

"No.. I liked you even more."

"_Takaishi.."_

"Oh, you know what I mean, not _that_ way,"

She giggled, and said, before taking another drag from her cigarette, "Hikari'd lose a limb to hear that from you,"

_What an exaggeration,_ he thought. Hearing her name felt weird, a stinging feeling crept on his chest. He wished he could say it to _her_, too, and mean it that _way_. He thought of it for a while, maybe he needed to talk it all out to someone. Maybe just be like every teenager, complain about his love life and get cozied with a friend's comforting words.

It seemed like a good idea.

The blond looked at her, took the cigarette box and the lighter from her palms. He popped one stick out, lit the cigarette, put it on his mouth. _Just for tonight._

Taking of what would be his first and last cigarette, he looked at Mimi with a melancholic smile, "Heh, I don't think she's that in to me."


	21. In medias res: Act I

**Author's Note: **This is one of the arcs I've been looking forward to write. I want to write this scene uninterrupted by other segments, just to emphasize how important it is. I'm going to write two more consecutively, and they'll all be titled _**'In medias res'**_, which means **in the middle of things**, (just for those who don't know). The first one is focused on Yamato and Mimi.

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-one  
_In medias res: Act I_

_._

_._

"You look terrible." She said, with her arms folded across her chest. He still looked good; only, she wasn't used to the very obvious circles around his eyes.

Yamato frowned, slightly disappointed with her greeting. He expected a hug, a smile, a compliment, or something friendlier than an unwanted comment about his disheveled appearance. He's aware of it, and he didn't want to hear it from anyone, especially from Mimi. He did skip his Advanced Calculus 1 tonight for her after all, and this little greeting made him want to recheck his priorities.

"Well.. you haven't changed," he spat, copying her pose. He noticed her hair had gone an inch shorter, and her face paler and more sullen. Other than that, she was still all the same. "So, how are you?"

"Oh _Yama-kun!_" as if she had switched to another persona, she threw herself on him and circled her arms around his waist.

A faint red tinted his cheeks, wondered when Mimi started addressing him with _"Yama-kun"_.

"It's been terrible." She whispered against his woolen coat. And it had been increasingly terrible since the beginning of autumn. The goings-on with Taichi would have been completely fun, if not for the complications that haunted her after their dates – despite the usual lunch together with the others, the very presence of Koushiro had only made her feel miserable.

Misery was the only emotion that seemed right to feel. "I don't have friends."

He pulled her away from him, held her on the shoulders. "You're overreacting again,"

"It's not like I can talk to Takeru or Hikari about these things.." _Although,_ Takeru did surprise her with his subtle maturity last night. "Or Daisuke, or Miyako. And you know, Koushiro-kun.."

And Sora, despite her not attending school for the meantime, had been mostly unavailable to her. They were supposed to meet today – was supposed to meet up with Sora instead of Yamato, but the redhead made a sudden call, said something being sick, then bailed out. It was the last straw and Mimi couldn't buy the 'sick leave' excuses anymore, and had gone fully paranoid.

_No, no, I am not paranoid. She just ditched me three times already, _she reminded herself. And the fact that Taichi told her he'd meet up with Sora was enough for a valid reason. Although she wasn't really good at holding grudges, she couldn't pass this one up. But Sora was the least of her problems right now, and she dealt with a larger, more recurring issue.

"Still the same problems, Tachikawa?" he smirked.

"I'm sorry that my problems are not as significant as yours!" she shrieked, her arms tossed up in the air.

He let out a lighthearted chuckle, and it earned him a glare.

"Come on, let's talk about your adolescent problems over dinner," he teased. He tugged her by the sleeve, dragged her with him as they walked through the small crowd. "Where do you like to eat?"

The brunette smiled slyly from behind, put her hands over his shoulders as Yamato led the way. "Are you going to treat me?"

"It's not like I have a choice." He just couldn't let a girl pay for dinner.

"Steak."

"Uhhh.. Japanese? American? Korean?" he asked.

"Any's fine," she chirped. "Taichi had only been filling me in with ramen and I'm getting sick of it,"

"Ha ha.." an awkward laugh. Yamato wondered if there's any subtext to this. Does this mean Mimi liked being with him more than her pseudo-boyfriend Taichi? On the contrary, Taichi had been boasting about his relationship with Mimi, and earlier the guy just wanted to meet up with him tomorrow.

But like most of the time, Yamato had immediately rejected and told him to focus on his Japanese Law subject than hang out with him. It wasn't that he didn't care, or wasn't curious, though. Yamato just didn't want to hear more of Taichi whining about his college problems; and he still found it eerie when Taichi talked about Mimi like a lover.

They crossed the street, heading over to a slightly posh side of Ginza.

"How do you earn your money, Yama-kun?" she asked, her hands still resting on his back. He turned around, relieved that they were away from the crowd.

"Gigs," he said in between huffs. "And why are you calling me 'Yama-kun'?"

"Why not?"

"Nothing.." he said all flustered. They started to walk again, heading over to the American food joint at the other corner of the street. "Sora used to call me that."

"Oh."

"Heh."

"Want me to stop calling you that?"

"Nah, it's fine."

She couldn't help but smile, liked that he allowed her to call him by his cutest, most familiar nickname. "Just so you know, I'm not your girlfriend, Ishida!"

"You call me that now? What happened to 'Yama-kun'?" he chuckled, playing along with her.

Mimi couldn't help but smile for the rest of the walk and tried to keep up with the pace of his footsteps. "It was just a phase."

"I thought so."

"I'm kidding, _Yama-kun._"

And when he found it really sweet of her, he just smiled ahead.

They had grown hungrier – starving rather, by the time they reached the joint. And because it was Yamato who was going to pay for everything, Mimi took this as a chance to binge.

"You're so shameless," said Yamato wryly as he watched her finish her rib-eye. He admired her lack of class; it was something that he still hadn't gotten used to. He always thought Mimi would be more reserved when it came to such behavior. "Now I can't buy myself new vinyl records this month,"

"God, Yamato, you're so awful," spat Mimi, not minding that he could see the food she was chewing. "Don't be pretentious like Michael, buying vinyl records and a gramophone when you can digitally purchase them and play them on your phone,"

"Yeah yeah.." he scoffed, getting impatient. "So, why did you want to meet up, really? I'm sure it's not because you missed me."

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Yama-kun," she said, popping the last slice of her steak. "Of course I missed you,"

"Mimi, just get on with it."

"I think I've seen my ex," she answered nonchalantly, still chewing.

"Ohh," he managed, blinking a few times. "Where?"

"At your bar.. I think you've seen him around, it's sort of impossible to miss him… You know, Yoshio?" He shook his head, now finding her chewing very annoying. "Ummm.. Aoiyami Yoshioka.. does that ring anything.. umm he had green hair.."

Yoshio. Aoiyami Yoshioka. _SO HIS NICKNAME IS YOSHIO_. "That weirdo's your ex?!"

"He's not weird! He's just very eccentric!" she disagreed agitatedly. "Have you met him before?"

"Ahh.." Yamato leaned on his seat, "Yeah.. I did…" he didn't like how worked up she was. "Did you talk to him or something? Are you going out with him again?"

"No.. No I didn't.. and I'm not." She said, shaking her head. But he did notice her expression changing. "I don't want to deal with him anymore."

He would have said, _'That's good to hear'_, but didn't want to sound like a controlling, overprotective brother, dad, or a jealous boyfriend. Speaking of Aoiyami, Yamato remembered that the guy's band had just changed their name again, from Icky Pantsuits to Cake Moss. He swore that regular customers of the bar now preferred bands with weird names than bands with tasteless names such as Teenage Wolves. He wondered if he should change the name of their band to something equally obscure. He was too old for anything 'teenage' after all.

They stayed for a bit at the restaurant, until deciding to go to the first park they see back in Odaiba. The temperature drastically fell. Mimi looked up at the sky, noticed how cloudy it was. The blond copied her, trying to recall details of their conversation earlier.

"Yamato, do you want to go the bar?"

_Bar. Mimi. Bar. Aoiyami._ Yamato gave her a puzzled look. "The last time you went there was with me and Takeru last summer."

"What?"

"The last time you went to the bar was last summer," he repeated. "With me and Takeru,"

Upon sensing Yamato had already picked up her secret, Mimi started to walk away from him, fast. She didn't know why she was running away from him, why she's embarrassed, but she was, nonetheless. He followed her, eventually reaching her pace.

"Since when have you been going there by yourself?" he asked calmly, much to Mimi's surprise.

"Ahhh.." she stopped, looked at him before answering, "Just last summer," she replied, slowing down her walk.

"With whom?"

"Just me."

"What do you do there alone?"

"God, are you a cop or something.." said Mimi, rubbing her arm while avoiding his eyes. It frustrated her that he could pick up so fast. "The usual."

"What do you mean by the usual?"

Of course, Mimi had no choice and eventually had to give in to Yamato's interrogation. Soon, Yamato had found out about her alcohol and smoking, and how all of this stems back to Taichi and the others. By the time they reached the park, after two stops at vending machines, Yamato had already found out that Mimi was feeling the exact opposite of Taichi.

He felt awful for him.

"Ahh. I don't know, I've been feeling sad," she said, sitting on a bench. "I feel guilty for being miserable with him."

It was just as he had predicted, and it saddened him. He sat beside her, his eyes staring off at the bark of a tree. "But you do have fun with him, right?"

"I do.. I do." She said with a reassuring tone. "But right now I don't know. School has started already and seeing Koushiro every day and then seeing Taichi most of the time.."

She sighed, before continuing on. "I don't know. It's been eating me up."

The brunette took a cigarette from her pocket, lit it on. Yamato, who was speechless, could only gander at the sight. He didn't bother to take it away from her, or scold her. "I always assumed you and Taichi will be the most optimistic and loud couple,"

"I never thought of it that way. I always thought you and I were more compatible," she said, taking a drag. "Well, I think I'm compatible with you and Koushiro the most. It's a tie,"

_Huh? _"You did?"

"Yeah.." she said, smiling as she breathed out the smoke. "I think you ought otherwise though."

"…"

"Come on, tell me, you had no intention of being friends with me when we were kids."

"It's not like that," he said, running a hand through his hair, and smiled sadly. "You just seem really hard to talk to.. I just didn't really think you're interested."

"Speak for yourself! You were more unapproachable than I ever was. Sure you're pretty friendly with everyone but I did feel like I was of lesser importance," she ranted, rather more remorseful. Yes, she did hold a grudge. "I'm sure Gabumon also had a hard time dealing with you. You were so moody, it was hard to get to know you without tiptoeing around you."

"And I'm sure Palmon had an easy time dealing with you," he said sarcastically. "The poor creature was more sensible than you," "And come on, Mi. You were sort of a brat. I just didn't want to get in your wrong side like Taichi and Koushiro always do."

And when Mimi only fell dead silent, Yamato could only receive an icy stare:

"I said 'were'," he emphasized.

"It's something you and Palmon have thought in common, I'm sure." She retorted playfully. "But I guess it's why I feel this way right now."

"Feel what?"

She smiled, but didn't say anything else.

"Feel what, Tachikawa?"

"I've been trying to figure it all out," she told him softly. "right now, with all the complications going on among me and our friends… I just.. I just don't feel like I'm being myself at all when I'm with Koushiro, or Taichi, and even Sora right now. I feel like I'm a different person every time I have to face each one of them," she looked up at the sky, and started to count the stars as they faintly twinkled.

"I mean, I used to be so comfortable being myself with them, you know? I didn't care so much about what they had to think of me, and I wasn't so scared of them judging me. I wasn't scared that I might lose them because that thought has never crossed my mind.. I thought it was impossible," she was going to cry anytime, but she was more eager not to. And so, she closed her eyes.

"But now.. now all of those things are happening. I thought going back here to Japan would make me feel more at peace, and that I'd be able to pick myself back up again."

But she did cry, and Yamato could only count a tear two, coming from her eyes. "So, right now.. who are you now?"

And when she opened her eyes, he could only see them glisten. "I'm Mimi. Just Mimi."

He smiled, said nothing else. There came in a comfortable, familiar silence between them, before Mimi could recover from her tears.

And when Mimi was no longer teary, she told him, "You know what, I wonder how my life would have been like, if we had become friends much earlier,"

"Mimi," he said rather sternly, "I always considered you as a friend, even if we didn't talk that much."

"What the hell, Ishida." She exclaimed, chuckling.

Yamato had feared this. Even now, he didn't like how he had treated her before, claiming to be her friend, and yet he was out of sight. But one thing was for sure – "I know it doesn't make sense, but I did. And I cared for you just as much as I cared for everyone,"

She threw him a playful yet sarcastic look, not quite convinced. "You don't have to say these things, Yama-kun. But hey, if we did become closer before, I do wonder how it'd make a difference.."

"If we had become closer earlier, you wouldn't be smoking." He said wryly. "I won't be saying you should quit but I bet your mouth tastes like nicotine right now,"

_What?_ "Yeah, it's totally your fault, Ishida." She joked, masking her discomfort. She wondered if he was actually thinking of kissing her. Which, _of course_, would be absolutely weird.

"I'm sorry that I was a terrible friend," he said, with a very apologetic smile. He realized that only now had he truly meant this. He placed his hand over hers and squeezed it reassuringly, "but I'm here now."

_Oh, God this boy!_ she told herself, and anytime soon she'd break into tears again. Like magic, she could genuinely say she felt much better, happier – freer. She could just hug him right now.

"Ahh. Enough about me, what about you?" she asked, throwing off her cigarette and putting out its light. "How's college?"

"Ahh.." Yamato arched his back, before leaning on his seat. He crossed his arms and legs, tried to look calm. "It's been an uphill battle. I'm barely keeping up with it."

"Why chose that major in the first place then?"

"Sora."

"Ohh.." she said. "Did she want you to take Physics?"

"Ahh.. no.. it's not like that at all," disagreed Yamato, shaking his head. "Well, I never really expected Sora and I to fall out, you know. So.. other than the fact that going outer space is cool, there really isn't much reason for me to be here.."

He remembered that promise to her very well. And while he wanted nothing more than to keep it, he felt sad that this _act _meant nothing now. "And I only applied to Todai, so yeah, for now I don't have a choice."

"You can find a new reason," she encouraged, trying to uplift him. "Like, you know, build a real-life gundam… get a star named after you or your college girlfriend."

"I don't have time for a college girlfriend," he said. "Actually, a gundam sounds nice,"

"Koushiro actually mentioned he'd want to team up with you someday. And build a gigantic fighting robot." The brunette laughed off, missing her old relationship with Koushiro at the back of her head.

"Like sentai shows then?" he played along. "Haha. But you know, I think I'm almost at my limit. I might just drop my subjects and change a major."

"Like I said, you can find a new reason to keep going," she cheered. "Or you can do that, too. Study Music, Yama!"

It was always a very tempting idea to Yamato, but_ no_. "Hmmm."

Mimi leaned over, wanting to see his eyes that were directed towards the grass for too long. She longed for him to show her his wounds just so she could treat them; wanting him to confide to her just as she does to him. "What is it really, that made you take Applied Physics? What about Sora?"

He glanced at the girl beside her, somewhat finding it uncomfortable on how interested she is. "Back then, I promised Sora that I'd be reaching the end of the sky." It was simple as that. "Cheesy huh?"

"Weirdly, it is," she agreed, playfully punching his shoulder. "Never thought you're a romantic in the first place."

"I hide it very well." He said. "How is Sora anyway?"

Mimi was rather unsure how to answer it, having not seen Sora for quite a time now. But this was another problem she'd want to worry sometime else. "She's still not in college.. _that,_ I know."

"I see." He always assumed Sora would take Economics, and be at the Liberal Arts college with Taichi. "What do you plan for college, then?"

"I don't know yet," she answered simply. "But I like to be on the telly."

"That is typical of you."

"Yama-kun," she said, mustering all her courage to ask, "do you still love her?"

_God, this woman and her bluntness!_ thought Yamato. She really does have a way to make him fall off of his seat.

"I don't know.. I don't think so anymore." At least when he said it, he could believe that it was true. It was all that mattered.

"Well that's good for you," she said, smiling sadly. She bent over to get a three-leafed clover that was just beneath her shoe. "I'm having a hard time forgetting."

"I don't think you have to forget, Mimi," he said, watching her. "I think you just have to accept that it's a part of you now."

"Mhmm…"she toyed around the clover. _To forget_; she just couldn't do it, even when she tried.

"What about you? Do you still love him.. That guy?" he asked.

She looked at Yamato, made a long pause before answering. "Though the memories run around my mind everyday.. I like to believe that I no longer do."

He breathed deeply, gave a small smile. "That's good enough."

"But.. I.. Taichi.. and Koushiro.. Sora.." she continued, now flicking off the clover from her fingers. "I don't know. It's so complicated.. I don't want anyone to get hurt. I don't want to get hurt."

"Listen to me," he said, adjusting his position to face her. He was a bit taken a back how miserable she looked, and wondered if the same look was on her face when she thought of _them_. "You know who I am. You've seen me when we were kids. I used to punish myself,"

Mimi had only downwards, not really sure how to take his advice. But Yamato continued on. "I think you should be happy.. You deserve to be happy. And if Taichi makes you happy.. reward yourself by receiving that happiness wholeheartedly, and give that happiness to him in return."

She glanced at him, quite amused and impressed how good that advice was. Coming from Yamato, it was quite unexpected – but then again, he is Mr. Friendship. "And Koushiro? Should I be polyamorous now or what?"

"I know Koushiro's important, but you have to know that you're not responsible for everyone's pain. That's just being arrogant."

She fell silent, bent forward as her hands rested on her cheeks as she smiled at him. "Anything else, _sensei_?"

He chuckled, and copied her posture as well. "Even now, I never regretted risking my friendship with Taichi for Sora."

For some reason, Mimi felt her cheeks warmed up. Maybe it was because their faces were so close to each other, or maybe because the park was just humid. Whatever it was, she found his blue eyes extra attractive tonight.

"That's really nice to hear," she whispered, leaning back. "But I don't believe you, Ishida. Last spring you were just like any other teenager going through the greatest break-up of a lifetime!"

He leaned back too, now annoyed at her for breaking his mood. Rarely did he feel wiser. "You're such a kid. Why am I wasting my time with a high-schooler at this hour?! Really now, Mimi."

The brunette laughed, now being reminded how thankful she is for becoming friends with him. She'd reach out to him for a hug, followed by other sugary, flattering words, but held back as he might think of the gesture as something else.

"That song for me,"

"What song?"

"You know what song!"

"What about it?" he asked, blushing. He wondered if Mimi would ever shut up about that song. He was now half-wishing he didn't write that song in the first place.

She took out her player, put one of the earphone plugs on hers, and the other on Yamato's. Soon enough, the familiar bass, the subtle strumming, the soft drums, and his own baritone voice, created the melody that filled in her right ear – the left one in his.

He wasn't quite sure if it were the sappy love songs or the American movies he grew up with, but he couldn't resist but idealize the scene they were in now.

_Two of us, alone, in a flowery park, with a nice soundtrack to go by._

It was too perfect, too romantic; it was a dream which his twelve-year-old self would have loved.

Only now had he realized they were holding hands – she might have just slipped in her palm in his earlier without noticing - her hand was cold and small, and he wondered how Yoshio or Taichi entwined their fingers on hers _perfectly_ – if there was even such manner.

"This is really beautiful. You should make this one a single!" She said, giggling. "And then I'll star in the music video."

He slightly tilted his head, just enough to get a glimpse of her face. She started to sing along, surprisingly perfectly in-sync with the song. He wondered if Taichi could taste the hint of the cigarette off of her mouth, or if he just gets hypnotized by the sweet smell of her hair, unaware of the bitterness she held.

And somehow, for the first time in a very long time, Yamato had found himself wondering how it'd be like if he could kiss her.

* * *

**Autthor's Note:** Yaaaay another update! I've been quite free and I've been really looking forward to write this, you know. I remember my beta, saying "Finally some real Mimato stuff!" at the end. I'd love to hear you all out, Mimato fans! I know the story focuses more than just Yamato and Mimi, but this is still their story in all its heart. If you have any questions or anything to say to me about the story/chapter or to me, just drop by a review!


	22. In medias res: Act II

**Author's Note:**In relation to the lack of response from the last chapter: where had the Mimato fans gone off to?! :o

Anyway, this second part of this little arc solely focuses on Taichi and Sora.

* * *

**Salad Days**  
Chapter Twenty-two  
_In medias res: Act II_

_._

_._

Taichi picked up the newspaper from the table, before clipping his helmet under his chin. He only took the classified ads section with him and put it in the basket of his bicycle before heading off.

Sunday didn't feel like a Sunday at all, and judging from the clouds, it looked like it was going to rain. He's already regretting that he wore his gym shorts instead of his sweatpants. But then again, Sora might just have his older pair when he slept over there two years ago. As a matter of fact, he did remember leaving a lot of junk over Sora's house. Mostly, they were weird junk Sora borrowed from him and Hikari. He passed two blocks by, and then parked his bicycle on front of Takenouchi flower shop.

The bell rang upon his entrance, and Mrs. Takenouchi looked up from the counter, who was also at the phone.

"Taichi-kun," she greeted in her faulty _singy songy_ voice. "You're early."

"Toshiko-san," greeted Taichi with a bow and a smile. He looked around the shop, saw that they just recently acquired deliveries. _From Holland, I see._"Is Sora already up?"

"I think she is, Taichi." She answered, obviously too busy for small talk. Mrs. Takenouchi turned her back to him; her ear and her shoulder supporting the phone while she scribbled down on her memo pad.

"All right," said Taichi. As if it was natural, he carelessly removed his rubber shoes before slipping on his own house shoes. He noticed how small it already was on him, and maybe he needed a new pair - one that didn't have a _Kamen Rider_ print on it. He climbed up the staircase, quite noisily. He opened the door, as if entering a new dimension when the smell of the flowers withered away.

"Damn it!" he heard the familiar voice, just on cue. He found the scent of beef powder, looked over to see Sora working on the kitchen.

"I thought you were sick." He said.

"I am, but," It was unsurprising to Sora that he was immediately a few inches away from her. "I felt bad for not helping around these days so I decided to make lunch,"

He moved away from the busy redhead, and sat back on the couch. "I brought your knapsack back,"

"Thank God," said Sora, turning around with a dish of mixed vegetables on hand. "Hungry?"

"Ehh.. Not really. Thanks though," He refused politely. He went over to the fridge, looked for something to drink.

"So, how are you Sora?"

"I'm fine." answered Sora amidst the noise at the kitchen. "Other than this flu, I'm fine."

Taichi settled with a bottle of orange juice that seemed to have been there for a week. He closed the door, and pulled a seat in the dining area.

"Won't you affect the food you're cooking?" he asked carefully, worried that he might offend her and end up in the gutter later on. Sora started to clean the table, and finally catching Taichi's eyes for the first time.

Only now she noticed how tired he actually looked. The unchanging, optimistic tone of his voice had managed to fool her. Three days ago she found out that his father had been into a car accident. Although it became nothing serious, Taichi's father is yet to recover from the trauma. She felt awkward, but also sympathetic. "How's Susumu-ji-san?"

"Ahh.." His eyes looked downwards, and rested his hand under his chin. "Dad's already out of the hospital, but he still has to take medications and visit the hospital every weekend.. he still can't walk," he said in a neutral voice. "Hikari takes care of him most of the time, since mom started working in Yokohama."

Sora sighed, sat just across him. "Costs that much huh?"

"Yeah. The family's savings wasn't enough, and my dad's life insurance won't answer to the bills. The lawyer we hired said it will take some time to figure things out, so until then, we have to get the money."

"How did you guys settle with the hospital then?"

"A blessing in disguise," he said with a small smile, but still looking downwards. "Shin's one of the doctors there."

"Shin? Jyou's brother?" she asked a bit shocked and excited.

"Yeah. He told me that their dad is one of the shareholders there."

"Ohh.." Sora fumbled on her pocket for her phone, hoping that a certain _senpai_'s name would appear on the screen. "I heard from Jyou that the their family clinic is still recovering.. I reckon things in their business are back up again?"

"Yeah, it seems like it.. they made a special settlement.. it was really kind of them to consider this one," Taichi smiled even wider, now looking genuinely happy. Had it not been for Jyou and his family, he would probably have to halt his studies. "It felt really convenient and lucky."

"It is indeed." She smiled back, standing up from her seat to get back to the counter. Taichi watched her move from one pot to another, slightly curious what's in store for lunch. He wondered what Sora's cooking tastes like; he's 50/50 on that.

"So, about that part-time.."

_Oh no, not that again,_ she thought while she stirred the soup. "I'm not really sure about it, Taichi."

"And which is why I came here!" he exclaimed, his usual self was back. "Do you think your mom accepts part-timers here?"

"Taichi, you don't know anything about flower arranging," replied Sora. "Let alone, art, no offense."

"None taken," he answered confidently. He fiddled with one of the bean stalks, played with it like a toy. "You can teach me. I promise, I won't bail this time,"

But Sora had already doubted. It was the fourth time Taichi had attempted _ikebana_, and most of the time he ended up making assorted bouquets. As to why Taichi tried ikebana, was beyond her. But this time, he really seemed desperate for a job. What can a good friend do but help, _right?_ "I'll try asking, but I'm not promising anything."

"Okay!" he exclaimed, now grinning like an idiot. He continued to watch Sora prepare her meals, noticing that her waist had gone tinier. It scared him. "Say, what are you doing these days?"

"Last week I went to Kyoto to visit dad."

"Ohh."

"Last Wednesday I went fishing," she added. "I also tried some outdoor activities I wanted to do,"

He reckoned those _Sora-and-her-adventures_ stories were all true. _It must have been fun,_ he thought, wishing he could do those extreme sports. "Are you at least having a clue on what you want to do?"

Sora turned around to look at him, her lip biting a spoon. "Hmm.." If there was anything she found out from all the soul-searching, it was that doing the stuff where she felt at peace the most was her first priority. "Well, the only activity I've been really consistent of is knitting."

Taichi's grin got wider. "Why not try focusing on that? I'm sure you'll find something."

She crossed her arms, raised a brow. "Like what? It's just a hobby, Taichi-kun. Anyone can knit."

Sora jilted in surprise when he stood up from his seat, and went to only-God-knows-which part of their house.

Taichi grunted, started to look around their house. He searched for anything that Sora might have knitted. And he did; he found a lot of handmade sweaters in her room. He checked them out, surprised that they were all amazingly, tightly done. Picking a lavender one, he went back to the kitchen, held it up to show her.

"I would wear this." He said, stretching the piece of clothing on front of her. Sora looked over her shoulder chuckled, and scoffed him off.

"That's my size, Taichi,"

"I'm serious!" he complained, putting the sweater down. 'You should run a business or something!"

"Ehh," she found it weird that he was really agitated about this. Nonetheless, she appreciated his concern. "I'm not good with that sort,"

"I can help," he replied determinedly. "Mimi and I will help! Do you think there's such a degree where you can utilize this skill?"

"Umm…" she turned around again, "Fashion?"

"Try that!"

"But.." it wasn't a new idea - her taking fashion. It had been quite a while since she had thought of it, but there was just one problem that bothered her, thus her hesitation – "I don't know how to draw."

"Well, you can work on that," he said, taking a seat again. "You always do."

"Hmm.." _maybe I could take drawing classes next week,_ Sora told herself. "I'll think about it," she answered, hoping he'd drop the subject. "How's college?"

"Ahhhhhh.." he dropped his head on the table, making a loud noise. "I'm fine. It's hard."

"How hard?"

"I study every time." He murmured.

"Oh!" she said, faking her surprise. "You do now? I'm so proud."

"I mean it, Sora!" exclaimed Taichi again, now slamming his fists on the table. "I study while I eat breakfast, while I do chores, while I commute, while I ride my bike, while I eat lunch, while I have a break, while I'm in a group of friends, while I eat dinner.." the list had went on.

But the redhead could only laugh. "I'm impressed." She told him, now putting the meat with the soupy mixture. "So, when do you actually not study?"

"When I'm with Mimi."

She smiled, couldn't help but be delighted of Taichi's improvement in so many areas. "As it should be."

"But I think I'm not doing enough," sighed the brunet. He checked on his phone, yet to receive another message from his girlfriend. "I try to not her get involved with my problems but I guess I'm just as preoccupied."

"Ahh. Just tell Mimi-chan," she suggested. Now thinking of Mimi, she really does have to make up to her soon. Knowing Mimi, she might think she's purposefully ignoring her.

"Say, have you heard anything of Kou-kun?" she asked, too randomly.

"No," he answered abruptly. "No I haven't," it had been almost a month since he and Koushiro had talked. And whatever, _whatever!_Taichi scolded himself. He had better things to take care of – like his father.

"But you know, I no longer have the time to go to the gym and the only exercise I get now is with my bike." He said, trying to avert the sensitive topic that is Izumi Koushiro.

She turned her head to look at him, noticed a more serious expression on his face. She turned to her pot. "You don't need the gym though. You still look fit."

"That's because all the food I eat goes to my brain now," he whined, running his hands simultaneously through his hair. "My professors seem to love playing tricks on me, they always call me during recitation."

"Do you get by, at least?"

"I do," he sighed. "But you know, I only do because I study all the time."

"Well that's good to hear."

"It isn't, Sora!" he exclaimed again, now standing up from his seat. "It's like my life is all about studying," he moved closer to her, keenly watched Sora's cooking turn from a pale color to brown. It smelled nice. "And you know, I need to find work right now, too."

"Okay, I'm getting hungry," he muttered, but loud enough for her to hear. She looked at him playfully and affectionately punched his arm.

"Try it," she offered, her spoon filled with a bit of the soup. Taichi sipped from the utensil, made some clicking noises with his lips. He could see the expectant look on Sora's face. He grinned, and said, "Needs more sugar."

The hopeful look on her face fell and stared at him sternly. "No it doesn't."

He chuckled, went back to his seat.

"I heard from Mimi-chan that you're learning to suit up," she said. Mimi had messaged her just a day ago, and told of this fascinating detail.

"Well, she likes it." He boasted.

But there was also something Mimi told her, and bothered her to bits. "Did you know she and Yamato went out last night?"

"Yep."

"And...?" she turned around, her arms crossed against her chest. Her eyes were narrowed, lips curled.

"And what?" Taichi shot Sora an intriguing look. "They're friends. Mimi went with Yamato because you cancelled on her,"

"Because I was sick." She answered bitterly. She didn't like it that Taichi had to point that out.

"Yep. Because you're sick." He agreed sipping from the last drops of his orange juice. He alerted when he felt Sora glaring at him. "What?"

"I'm surprised that you're okay with this."

He could sense it again; the familiar thing Sora does when _she doesn't feel good about something_. "Umm.. why? They're friends.. they can hang out."

"Even if Yamato's your best friend, it's still another guy with your girlfriend."

"Yeah but.. I couldn't accompany her yesterday." He answered. "She asked me if I could meet up with her, but I had evening classes."

"Yeah.. well," she turned around, masking her frustration. _Of course,_ Taichi would not understand. "It's just weird because if I were in your place, I'd be mad jealous."

He snickered, remembered how Yamato was just as equally jealous of him and Sora during the run of their former relationship. It reminded him mostly of that time he (himself) and Sora went to Ueno Park. And the blond just went secretly batshit crazy. And then there was Yamato and Mimi becoming close friends quicker than the flash of lightning. Everything about Yamato and Sora's relationship had gone downhill from there. "You're always jealous."

It was at this fact that she quickly turned around, her red eyes glowering at him.

"How is it that you're still able to infuriate me?" she retorted, now holding her spoon as if she could use it as a weapon. But Taichi could only snicker, and find it all funny and ironic.

"I know we've talked about this before, but be honest," he said, "do you still love him?"

"I don't.." she said, turning her back. Her voice had calmed down, and so did her shoulders. "I don't anymore. But I'm still having a hard time to forget everything.."

"I really did think it was going to be forever.." she trailed off, but chuckled as well when Taichi did. "Ugh. I don't like it when I say it on front of you."

Her meal had already finished. Sora poured some of the soup in two porridges. Still embarrassed, she placed the two on the table, and sat across him with an unamused face. He was still laughing.

"You are so terrible," she said, giving him a spoon. He took it and thanked her for the food.

"No, I like it! You sound more feminine for once," he said, rather carelessly.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" the redhead shrieked. "Unbelievable! I can't believe you still think I lack the feminine touch!"

"N-no! That's not what I meant," he said, slapping a hand on his forehead. He reached out across the table to take her hand, squeezed it reassuringly while he tried to soothe her. "I mean, you don't have to act so tough around me,"

"What, I don't act tough around you," she defended.

"But you do," argued Taichi. He could not help but think this was all his fault. If there was something he was going to admit as his fault, it was Sora's bruised ego. _I really need to say things better_, he told himself. "God, did I really traumatize you with that hair clip?!"

She turned to him, laughed in sarcasm. "And I'll never be the same again, Yagami."

"Come on Sora, _this,_" he said, his hands gesturing to her and the dinner table. "This stuff you're doing, it's awesome,"

"You're only saying that to comfort me," she retorted, looking away while eating her soup.

"It is though," he reassured. "Months ago you don't even know how to prepare raw fish. Nowadays I keep hearing you're climbing mountains while knitting sweaters,"

She looked up at him perplexed, wondered where on earth that little detail came from.

"I mean, I'd love to do those things, too, you know," he said, now starting to ramble while he held up his spoon around. "I thought reaching this level of maturity would mean more freedom to do the things I want,"

"And yeah, it does go like that, but it also meant that I have responsibilities to work with.." he continued on. "You know, real priorities."

Sora noticed the changing tone in his voice, and so continued to eat as she watched him. For some reason he was gaining a huge amount of respect from her, admiring how he's changing and turning out to be. At first, she reckoned Taichi would eventually be just like every college student she knows – full of recklessness, getting stuck in being an adolescent, and mediocre grades.

"So yes, Sora, I need that job," he said, finishing his rant. "Do you think you can help me?"

"Your eyes," she told him, "they're pleading."

Noticing that only made Taichi's expression more exaggerated – it was almost _too_cute. "They are, because I'm trying to convince you,"

She continued to stare at him, waiting for his seriousness to falter. _Still_, he could really do something with his hair, she thought to herself. But how can she even resist him?

_Taichi. Stupid Taichi._"Fine, fine. I promise. I'll see how it goes."


	23. In medias res: Act III

**Author's Note: **I'm sorry this took so long. I have it written long before, but I was too busy to edit it. I wanted to portray something more about Hikari here, since her character hasn't developed much yet. For any Takari fans out there, here's a treat (although.. I don't know.. right now they're not really in a shippy moment). Digimon Adventure Tri: Saikai is about to come soon, and let me just disclose it - a lot of the character descriptions, particularly Taichi's and Yamato's descriptions have proven my head canons on them; Teenage Wolves get disbanded, Yamato creates a new one (and hopefully recruits Mimi), Taichi being the first to face adulthood. And I'm kind of really bummed how slow I've been writing this because I've already nailed the latter headcanon in some way *lmao*

To everyone, thank you for all the support. I'd be really glad if you guys drop by a review. I'll be responding to PMs later!

Also, as a consolation for my slow update, the next chapter will be about Taichi, Yamato, and Jyou.

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-three  
_In medias res: Act III_

_._

_._

He was greeted by wind and a clear sky as he opened the door. Takeru winced at the light at first, but immediately recovered as he saw the brunette standing on front of him, her back turned. Gust of wind went through her hair and her skirt, flowing in a rather graceful direction. And yet her figure remained still, completely unaware of his presence.

He looked around; saw some familiar buildings and skyscrapers reaching the clouds. The bullet train line could also be seen from here. He could hear a bit of noise that came down from campus grounds, but it was bearable. He thought that this was a nice place to write.

His train of thought stopped when she turned around. He gulped and breathed deeply, before he walked towards her and said, "Hi."

"Oh.." She was slightly disappointed with him being terse. Nonetheless, she shook the feeling off and put up a rather familiar smile and personality. "Hi."

Nothing terrified him more than her friendly face. "You wanted to talk?"

"Mhmm." She nodded, looking down to the item in her hands. "But let's eat lunch first, shall we?"

"Ahh. I'm going to go down though, I didn't - " He stared at the thing she held up. "Oh.."

_Well that's rather impolite of you_, she thought to herself, not liking the expression he was making. "Ahh. I couldn't help it."

He followed her as she sat down on the floor, her nervous and fragile hands unpacking the lunch made for two. "You shouldn't have," Like, _really_, she shouldn't have. It was bothersome. There was completely no reason for her to make lunch for him. It didn't make quite sense, and this little gesture of Hikari confused him. _It's not like we're going out.. _and yet he couldn't help but also notice how _waifu-material_ –

He immediately went red at the thought of it. _Good Lord, Takeru… _he scolded himself.

His silence was not helping her at all. Sure, it had already been a month or two that they haven't engaged in tête-à-tête, but knowing him - Takeru - who was rather usually talkative – _should_ be trying to relieve the awkwardness around them. _I should have lowered my expectations._ "Sorry," she replied, handing him a pair of pink plastic chopsticks.

"Ahh.." He accepted them, before opening the bento she made for him. "No.. Thank you."

She gave him a smile before starting on her lunch. She noticed he has not opened his bento yet – _probably contemplating on how weird this is, _she thought – but she couldn't wait for him and ate her own.

It had been quiet for a while. No noise, no anything – as if the world had stopped. He noticed that, and every little move she did, from her silent chewing to her shaking chopsticks.

He opened his bento, not so surprised how pretty and organized the food was placed. He almost wanted to take a photo of it. "You made this? Or Yuuko-san?"

"I did," she replied, not looking at him. "Oka-san is too busy to cook now."

He bit off of the beef. "Oh," he exclaimed softly in between his chewing. "It tastes amazing."

"You always think food is amazing," she smirked. "whoever cooked it."

"Hmm." It was unexpectedly tasteful. He knew Hikari wasn't good at cooking, but maybe she took a cooking lesson from Sora – or Mimi. "But, you know, how did you make it?"

"Make it?" she looked up, her chopsticks on her mouth.

"Make it taste like Daisuke's yakiniku?"

"Daisuke taught me how," she replied. "Onii-san wanted to learn too, for dad. Dai-kun came over."

Takeru blinked a few times, before his head fell down to look at his lunch. _Dai-kun._ He didn't see that coming so soon. "I see."

Perhaps it was a wrong move to mention Daisuke right now, she reminded herself. She noticed his reaction, but figured it was best to ignore it. She continued to eat her meal.

Another uncounted several minutes of silence had passed them by, both trying to read each other's minds, carefully thinking of the next words they're about to say. It had taken so long, that both of them knew they were waiting for each other to speak up.

_This is so painfully awkward._

But _alas_, he was always known to be more impatient than her – by a finger. He was done with his lunch anyway.

"Did you see the results earlier?" he asked rather cheerfully. "The newspaper club?"

"Ahh.. yeah.." she replied, eating every grain of rice left. "I didn't get in, unfortunately."

"Ohh.." His surprise came out fake. He knew she didn't, and now he was scolding himself for even bringing it up. "I'm sorry.. you can always try next time.." _So lame, Takeru._

"Yeah.." She felt ashamed, somewhat disappointed in herself – and embarrassed. Definitely – since Takeru passed and got in the club.

_Well there goes the small talk_, he thought to himself. He thanked her for the meal, then gave the empty bento back.

_Poorly attempted,_ thought Hikari.. She hated small talk; and by the look on his face, he was doing very poorly to communicate with her.

Nonetheless, she knew he meant well.

"So, you know, I watched the new comic book film you said I should watch," this time she was the one to start. "It was surprisingly good."

"You did?!"

"Yep. I watched it with onii-san." She replied, rather pleased and satisfied with his expression. "Even he found it awesome."

Takeru leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. He had a funny expression on his face; in between happy and proud – and she couldn't help but hold her giggles.

"That's nice," he said. "People have been really cynical about it, you know. I loved the movie though. It really went past my expectations."

"Yeah, me too," she agreed, also leaning against the wall. "It was kind of nice to watch a downsized blockbuster. The cinematography was amazing,"

"I watched that just a week ago and I noticed it too. I told myself, _'Ahh, Hikari-chan would love this'_."

And from there her cheeks came ruddy; it didn't go unnoticed. "The visuals are nicely done." added Takeru.

"Yeah, they are."

"What do you think about the characters?"

"I think they're all good. The male's sort of weak but I like how much of a team player he is rather an individualistic superhero. "

"Haha. Cool. We thought the same thing. I liked how non-serious most of them are. "

"I still think female representation lacks in most of their movies,"

"Yeah…" _Of course. Hikari always notices those things. _"I can't argue with that. I do hope they start to focus on that in their next movies,"

"Yeah, me too."

"Have you heard about the new café downtown?"

"Uhh.. No?" _Well that was out of the blue_. She wondered if he was going to ask her out. The thought made her palms sweat.

"Koko Station. They have photography workshops every weekend," he answered. "Every week there's a theme and the participants have to take photos that relate to the theme,"

"They roam around?"

"Of course."

She gave a lopsided grin, scratched her head with a finger. "How tedious."

"Come on," he chuckled, softly bumping her arm. "Stop being an introvert every once in a while."

"Yeah I know, I just.." she drifted off, then looked away. Since middle school she had learned that photos weren't just decorations or memorabilia. They were meant to tell real stories. Of course, nothing made her happier than making something more out of a mere hobby, if only she didn't have to take care of her sick father every day. It would be selfish of her to say she's a victim of circumstance –_ I'm not that deprived after all._

It didn't mean she hated accompanying her father to the hospital since the accident, but it did put some of her life on hold, especially when things going on in her own personal life had been complicated.

But seeing how happy Takeru was, she let go of the thought and smiled instead. Takeru-kun. _Dear _Takeru-kun always took care of her dreams when she couldn't. Maybe she just misunderstood him back then.

"Okay, fine. I'll give it a go." she turned her head, smiling. "How much is the workshop?"

"Cool. I'll accompany you and help you if you want," he said, now leaning forward. "And it's for free, as long as you buy coffee there."

_I mean, he says he wants to accompany me.. so maybe I should just ask.. it's not like he's going to reject me.._ her mind was going _ratatata_, but Hikari thought to pop the question on the right moment.

"I really want to make this photography thing more than just a hobby," explained Hikari. It had become warmer all of the sudden. She started to fan herself with her hands. "Something to take when I go to college, you know."

"Yeah, I know." He held her shoulder and gave a reassuring grip. The sudden skinship almost made her jump. "I think you should really attend to this. It might help. It won't hurt to try!"

"Yeah. I'll look in to it… Thanks." _Maybe I should ask?_

"How's your 'high-fantasy-epic' going on?"

_So you're still reading my blog, huh, _Takeru thought. "Ahh. Still in development," he answered abruptly. He didn't know world-building could have been so hard_. Even more so, while having a shitty love life._ "I haven't been able to concentrate with it nowadays,"

He started to talk about his project, said how hard it was to keep characters from being stereotypes, and avoiding clichés. Takeru also went on with how he and his brother had been arguing about the characters – Yamato said the main character was _"too much like Taichi"_.

Hikari was hearing all of this, but wasn't absorbing any of it. The small talk came long, and she was also running out of patience.

She just had to ask.

"Takeru-kun?"

He paused from his chatter. "Hmm?"

She stood up, and he followed suit. "I'm sorry if I've been cold these days," She looked at the sky, the towering buildings, the little houses, the speeding train.

"No.. don't worry about it." he assured with a smile. "We're good now right?"

She turned to face him, her hands no longer clasped together, her back no longer hunched. She would remember this day – every little detail of it. It was a sunny autumn day, and it wasn't completely quiet, there was still that faint noise from below; but it was enough for her to voice out her sentiments -

"I just… things are so complicated."

\- and bare out her feelings.

"I like you." It was the longest time she held her breath.

Takeru, with hands inside his pockets, just stared at her, eye-to-eye; rather surprised that she wasn't looking away. A gust of wind from the west came, perfectly giving that certain movie-like _'effect'_ as it blew on her hair and skirt. It was _cliché_, he thought, but she was beautiful. _Painful. _He was just an arm away from her, and he wanted so badly to reward her courage – but even his lips had gone too weak to even smile.

"I know."

"Do you like me?"

"I do."

"You understand what I meant when I said '_like'_, right?"

He took her hand, didn't say anything at first. He examined her palm, her translucent skin, the purplish roots underneath.

"I do," he said, now tearing his eyes away from hers. "I do, Hikari-chan.." now turning to face the horizon instead; but his hand was still clasped in hers. "But,"

_How can I even say it?_ He didn't want to say it. "But Hikari-chan –"

"Enough." She exclaimed in a commanding tone; her other hand made a gesture for him to stop. "I know what you're going to say. You'll say that we're too young for this, and I understand why you think that way,"

_Saved from another babbling explanation,_ he thought to himself.

"But I'm willing to wait."

He let go of her hand, his shameful expression turning into a stern one.

"I don't want you to."

She blinked a few times, wondered if she just heard him right. "Huh?"

"I don't want you to wait."

"Why not?"

"Because you shouldn't wait."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No.." he turned away from her, looked to his other side. "No you didn't."

"Then what is it?"

"Just don't."

It was enough to almost completely drive Hikari mad and anxious.

"I honestly don't understand, Takeru-kun. I like you.. and you said you like me too so why..." she said, trying to be calm, but her gaping mouth and her rapidly blinking eyes were giving it all away. "I don't understand – "

"Exactly," he said coldly, now gazing far off. He's _here_, but he's also somewhere else. "You don't understand."

Right after when he said this, the chaos in her wanted to get out, and she wanted to fall_ apart_ -

"W-why.. Ahh.." but fell on her knees instead, letting out a heavy breath. Gathering the now empty lunchboxes, she silently packed them back in her lunch bag, slowly stood up from ground and immediately turned her back on him.

"Ahh.. how embarrassing this is." She whispered, followed by a soft laugh. "Thank you for coming. I'll go now. Have a good day."

"You too." He didn't even look back at her.

Hikari closed the door behind her, completely blank. She placed a hand over her chest, felt as if it was galloping, trying to come out of her rib cage. She took several deep breaths before climbing down the stairs.

The hallway was still empty and quiet. Too quiet, it made her feel scared. She dabbed her handkerchief over the sweat trickling from her head and neck, and breathed deeply again. Loosely clutching her lunchboxes, she dragged her feet with her; her vision absolutely fixed that she didn't even blink. And when she did, tears fell.

_Ahh.. I shouldn't be doing something so unsightly.._ she thought, surprised at her body's reaction. Sighing and wiping her face, she rummaged through her pocket and opened her phone to check up on her dad. It took three tries before the phone was picked up, and it wasn't her father who spoke.

"Mom?" Was her mom on leave?

"Kari-chan, thank God you called," her mother cried through the phone. "I couldn't call your brother because he's in a lecture but God, I'm so glad Kari,"

"Why what's wrong?" replied Hikari, agitated.

"Otou-san had a breakdown,"

Her feet immediately stopped, and so did her heart – for a while. "What?"

"H-he, he broke down, Hikari," repeated her mother. "We were doing the recovery exercises, but he broke down… He's in the hospital right now," She could hear her mother's sniffles in between.

"W-what.. What did they say?" she asked in a forcefully calm tone and continued her walk. The walk along the hallway felt like a procession, only dragging her feet as her whole body suddenly felt too heavy.

"They said his nervous system suddenly shut down,"

"Ahh.." Hikari put a hand over her forehead, wiping off her sweat. "Is he going to be alright?"

"I don't know… Oh God Kari-chan, I don't know.."

Her mother started to cry again, and Hikari wanted so badly to join her, but was unable to when two of her classmates passed her by. She turned around to face an open window, and leaned on the sill. "Please don't cry oka-san.." she whispered softly to the phone. "It'll be alright.. Dad's a fighter, right?"

"I'm sorry.." her mother apologized. "Ahh.. don't tell this to your brother yet okay.. he's already stressed out with everything.. I'll tell it to him in the afternoon.."

"Y-yeah.." she agreed. The thought of her brother came in and bothered her more. "Okay.. I'll go there after school.."

"Thank you Kari-chan… Thank you."

"No.. it's okay 'ka-san..." she reassured in a happy manner. "I'll call again later.. Try to be strong too, okay? For dad!"

Hikari ended the call with her lips forced into a smile. Looking at her phone, she noticed two messages from Taichi; the previews of the messages seem to bear dreadful news.

"Hikari? What's wrong?"

She made a small jump, surprised to hear a familiar voice. "Ahh.." she titled her head a bit to look see him. "I-I'm okay, Takeru. Were you there the whole time?"

He ignored her question, apparently too concerned with the expression on her face, and everything he just heard.

"You don't sound like it," he said, walking towards her.

In return, she tried to shake him off by walking away. "I am, please just don't mind me,"

He managed to take her by the shoulders and forced her to turn around and face him. "I'm not buying that, something's wrong,"

"I told you, everything's fine – "

'it's not fine, Hikari –"

"Why the hell do you care Takeru, you –"

"Of course I care, Hikari.. If you would just let me – "

"Stop it, Takeru, don't make a scene here," she snarled, already running out of breath as she violently squirmed away from his hold. "Can you just go away?!"

It was rare for him or anyone else to see her so restless. Even Hikari had her moments – but he wasn't going to let her push him away.

"It's about your otou-san! I heard, okay? You could have told me –" he was cut off by surprise when she did the most unexpected.

His blue eyes were the roundest they've ever been.

"Ahh, I'm sorry_, I'm sorry_ –" her hands tried to reach out to him, but she began to shake.

"I told you, I-I told you should have just.." she fell on her knees, on front of him, _for the second time_. She silently wept in between her two hands as he stood still, completely paralyzed as he held his reddening cheek.


	24. Boyhood

**Author's Note:** as I was writing this, I've realized this story has evolved from a Mimato story to a Chosen Children story. This chapter almost reached 5,000 words, and I have to say, wow. Writing these characters is truly fun and somewhat fulfilling. In light of Digimon Adventure Tri, I have decided to continue on with my plans, and whatever new canon stuff might come up, I'll try to consider them in my story. And yes, dear _Scripturiens_, _soojinah_, and the rest of Jyoura fans! _It_ is definitely happening. So please watch out for it unfold!

As I've said, this chapter will be about Jyou, Yamato, and Taichi. It takes place the same day the Takeru &amp; Hikari chapter happened.

The next chapter will mainly be about Koushiro and Hikari (and perhaps Sora &amp; Mimi – I don't know yet, I'm still trying to find the right time with these two). Expect a Michi chapter soon, too! Enjoy reading and please drop by a review!

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-four

_Boyhood_

.

.

_Monday evening._

_._

_._

"What took you so long?!"

"Gahh," Taichi held his knees, panting after running from the eighth floor down to the main square. "Sorry, I was the last person to leave class. Professor talked me into something." "Hey, Jyou!"

"Taichi-kun," the medicine student snapped. "You do realize you made us wait for an hour and a half,"

"Hence, your treat." said the blond.

He didn't know when he became so sensitive, but he thought it was all too brutal for Yamato to suddenly oblige him. After regaining his breath, Taichi had refused. "You know I can't."

Yamato crossed his arms, looked at his wristwatch and then to Taichi. He sighed in defeat. "Okay, fine. Not today," gave in Yamato. He was reminded of Taichi's 'vulnerable' state. "But it's definitely on the tab."

"Feels weird doing this, just us three." Spoke Taichi. It felt weird too to be together with Yamato and Jyou at an unfamiliar setting. It was the first time the three of them got together at Todai; and probably only with the three of them for the whole year. It felt weird.

"Yeah.." slowed in Jyou. He agreed, it does feel a bit weird. He felt like a substitute or stand-in to Koushiro. After all, he did somewhat feel 'ostracized' for the past few months. Then again –_ it could just be my paranoia. _"Did no one invite Koushiro-kun though?"

"I messaged him, but he didn't reply," replied Yamato, glancing at his phone. "Before we go, do any of you have a curfew to follow? I don't have any since I don't have any classes tomorrow."

"I'm free the whole night," said Jyou as he cleaned his his spectacles with the hem of his shirt. "I can squeeze in my homework during my break tomorrow."

"I need to be home by ten," said Taichi, looking at his phone as he tried to remember if he missed something out. "Ahh. You know. I take care of dad in the evening."

Yamato nodded . "Okay. 'til ten it is,"

"Let's just go look for my car," said Jyou. He started to walk towards the parking lot as he fiddled inside his left pocket. The two followed his suit.

"Where are we going anyway?" asked Taichi to Yamato, completely clueless of tonight's itinerary. They've reached the almost-empty lot, and saw Jyou's blue van from a distance.

"To the bar," replied Jyou instead. Originally it was only him and Yamato, but the blond thought to invite the others too. "I haven't had a drink since the summer."

Taichi laughed at this, completely remembering what Kido Jyou did during Mimi's birthday. "You didn't drink at all, Jyou!"

"He did take a sip or two – from Hikari's beer," went along Yamato as he watched Jyou open his car in amusement.

"I needed to be sober! You guys were all over the place!" he defended in the most typical-Jyou manner as he sat on the driver's seat. The two got in the van, with Yamato at the passenger seat. In a few minutes they had already exited the campus.

"I'm going to quit Physics." Blurted Yamato out of nowhere.

"Ha-ha-ha Ishida.. Laaaaame!" snorted Taichi as he playfully kicked Yamato's seat from behind.

"Idiot, I'm not kidding."

Jyou scratched his head, kept glancing from right, top, to left. "Ahhh.. is this for sure?"

"I don't know," replied the blond with irritation. The thought of still staying at Physics was agonizing. "I don't feel like it."

"Ahh.." the medicine student carefully tried to focus on the topic, and on the blind spot. "Do you find it boring?"

"Ahh.. No.." he rambled on, 'til he could no longer face Jyou and stared at his reflection at the side mirror.

"I mean, it's all fascinating, really. But it kind of gets.." _Boring. Too Hard_. Yamato just couldn't admit that he was considering running away from this one. To think, he was never really one to run away from his problems.

Even Taichi knew Yamato wasn't one to run away. He actually thought he'd be the first one to drop his major and choose an easier one. Taichi crossed his arms, unsure how to handle the news. "If you do quit, what do you plan to do? Music?"

"Maybe," replied Yamato nonchalantly. The idea seemed to be less ridiculous than it was as days passed by. "Mimi said I should try."

"Aha! I was right. In the end, you are going to take Music!" exclaimed Taichi. "I hate to say it but I told you so. And, how come you listen to Mimi and not me? This is really unfair."

Yamato rolled his eyes, tried his best to ignored him. "What do you think, Jyou?"

"Ahh.. Well, if things don't work out with Physics in the end, you can always come to that!" Jyou immediately thought it was a lame advice.

Yamato knew they weren't the ones to judge – but it really sounded awful that he was now thinking of quitting. The fact that Taichi is also unintentionally pulling off this working-class-hero act wasn't doing good to Yamato's ego.

"Ishida, did you hear me? I was right! I was right all along," Taichi stuck his head out from the back seat to get a closer view of Yamato's irritated face. "You are going to take Music and slam more guitars on the head,"

The blond clicked his tongue. "You know, for a Liberal Arts student, you aren't really that funny," said Yamato. Like always, the banter turned into a playful fight.

Soon it became a bit rowdy for Jyou, as Yamato started to shove Taichi's head all the way back. "You guys.. please, not here," pleaded Jyou, but he was unheard of.

"It's not like I'm trying to be funny, Ishida," continued Taichi from the back. "You don't even know how to crack a joke."

Jyou laughed, relieved he wasn't the butt of the joke – for once. "Sorry Yamato. It's a given fact Taichi's a natural."

Yamato begged to disagree. "A natural clown? Why, yes."

"You know what, Ishida? I don't even know why you're picking a fight with me, I have so many other things to deal with right now," said Taichi. His tone was different and more agitated than before.

_What the hell..? _Yamato and Jyou looked at each other, both confused at the sudden emotional outburst.

"Chill out, Yagami. We were just playing," replied Yamato in a calm yet stern voice.

"Are you okay?" asked Jyou. Typical bad cop, good cop tandem.

And when Taichi had realized what just had happened, he let out a groan, put a hand over his face. "Ahh. Sorry. I think I'm having my PMS now."

The two let out a snicker. _Okay, fine, he is a natural, _thought Yamato. "You're crazy."

"Of course I am.." replied Taichi in sarcasm. Yet, it wasn't enough to mask his embarrassment. "Ahh. Sorry. "

Yamato couldn't help to say it too. "Sorry." Who would have expected that the great Yagami Taichi was also meant to fall apart?

If things have been changing since then, it was surely drastic now. Exactly one year from now Yamato remembered having a conversation with Sora about their future. They promised how they'd always still make some time for each other even if college becomes difficult; that or they can just study at the same place so they'd never ever drift part. But in a few months, they actually did.

He ran a hand through his hair, a bit overwhelmed with the feeling. I guess this is the feeling Mimi was talking about. Admittedly, he did miss Sora at times. Despite things not working out between the two of them, she was still for keeps, even as a friend. If ever, he wouldn't mind her being back into his life.

Jyou, however, had noticed these little changes among them before. Not a really surprising reaction from Taichi – but that didn't mean Jyou isn't unsettled by it. The three of them were silent for a while, until Jyou hit the pedal when the traffic light went green.

"Taichi, you're starting to sound like Mimi," started Jyou, breaking the silence. He was growing hungry.

"In case you guys talk to Mimi, she doesn't know about the thing with my father," spoke Taichi. "She's becoming really clingy nowadays too.. she said she wanted to meet more often."

Jyou almost forgot that they were an item. _I guess that's still happening_.. he thought to himself. It was really unusual, but then again, it wasn't so impossible.

Yamato snickered, rolled his eyes to his side. Mimi must have taken his advice last weekend. "Anyway, Taichi, I wanted to show you something about Mimi. Since you two are exclusive with each other, I think you have the right to know,"

"What is it? Is she going to be there?"

"No.. but.." Yamato scratched the back of his head, glanced at Jyou, who was just as confused as Taichi. _Now thinking about, Mimi better not be there. _"Someone from her past will be."

Taichi could feel the tiny hairs of his arms stand up as Yamato said this. Uncertain he was, the fear was like an omen to him. His relationship with Mimi wasn't turning out to be as happy as he had expected despite his best efforts. He dreaded that they weren't enough. His heart continued to palpitate until they've reached their destination.

By the time they did, they immediately ordered meat-load of a dinner, spent most of the waiting time by arguing about Jyou driving like a grandmother. Yamato looked around to see any feature that belonged to Mimi among a sea of familiar faces. It didn't take him that long to realize she wasn't there, and a sigh of relief finally came from his mouth. He watched around a bit more, until he confirmed the presence of a certain green-haired man. There you are. Satisfied with the sight of him seemingly frustrated with the bartender, Yamato gazed no further and turned to his sides; he realized that two of his friends had been awfully quiet since they came in. They were both busy with their phones; and according to his peripheral vision, Taichi was talking to Mimi, while Jyou was to Sora.

He crossed his arms. Sora? He guessed she kept in touch with her favorite senpai. Frankly, he wanted to ask Jyou badly how she was doing, but no longer tried to, as he remembered he no longer had the right to inquire about her.

Eventually they had to order their drink after each of them had eaten 400 grams of katsu. As long as they won't be drinking Yebisu again – dear Lord, anything but beer! – Jyou and Yamato were okay to equally split the bill for a fifteen-year-old bottle of Yoichi, just enough to last 'til Taichi's curfew.

"So? What now? Yamato I'm tired of waiting," it had been an hour since they arrived in Town Ongaku Club, and much to Taichi's relief, there was no Tachikawa Mimi around. _Or maybe that's what he'd want me to think? _

Overthinking was never Taichi's best friend – but it's definitely Jyou's.

"Yeah, what is it, Yamato?" Jyou asked calmly, though he already prepared at least ten scenarios at the back of his mind.

"Just look at the stage," said Yamato, before taking a gulp from his glass. _Definitely better than beer._ "You'll know soon enough."

Taichi groaned out of impatience, poured himself another drink of whisky. Jyou leaned back against his chair, watched Yamato talk to some of his friends in the bar. He poured himself another drink too, was about to gulp it before his phone vibrated.

_Sora, 20:04 :"Mimi's ex? I've only seen him from Mimi's photos."  
Jyou: 20:04: "I haven't too.. but.. there was a guy here that looked exactly like her ex .. he looked a bit different though."  
Sora, 20:05: "No way. I thought he was in America?"  
Jyou, 20:06: "Well.. according to Mimi's story last summer, he might have gotten deported for all we know. Haha. Anyway. It seems that Yamato brought Taichi here for that.. I feel sorry."  
Sora, 20:06: "Yamato meddling again. (;_;) ahh. But maybe there's a reason? I haven't talked to Mimi yet."  
Jyou, 20:07: "I haven't too. Ahh. I just hope Yamato's doing this for the right reason. I'll try to find out."  
Sora, 20:07: "Okay Jyou-senpai!"_

Jyou put down his phone on the table, looked at Taichi who was just as busy with his phone. The doctor-aspirant crossed his arms, bit his lip as worry started to grow on him. Taichi had been too quiet the whole night. He was about to speak, already gathered his words, until he felt his phone vibrate again.

_Sora, 20:10: "Ahh.. I visited Susumu-ji-san and ran onto Shuu-senpai earlier. It was the first time I met him at the hospital. He said we should have dinner with him some time. Kekeke. Have fun, senpai!"  
Jyou, 20:11: "Of course, Sora-chan! Please have a pleasant evening too. :)"_

Jyou wasn't aware that a smile had crept on his face.

"You seem unusually happier than earlier," came Yamato's voice, now sitting beside Jyou's left. He had just rejoined them from the crowd.

"Ahh.. Hehe. I'm alright I guess." Nothing made Jyou more uncomfortable than Yamato staring at him.

"Yamato," spoke Taichi, retreating from his phone as he shoved the gadget down to his pocket. Contrary to Jyou, he was rather sour. "What's up now?"

Yamato looked around, before pouring the three of them another glass of the whisky. "Ahh. Let's just wait for a bit."

They waited thirty minutes more before their guest-of-honor took over the stage. Both Taichi and Jyou's first impression was that Aoiyami Yoshioka, also known as Mimi's ex-boyfriend, was one hell of a mess.

"That guy," he said, pointing to the green-haired frontman. _The fuck. He's becoming a regular here,_ he thought to himself.

Taichi stared at the man sourly_. Aside from having green hair, what was so special about him?_ He looked sick, as if he hadn't eaten for days, and he completely looked like someone Mimi would run away from had this man offered to buy her a drink. So what the hell does he have to do with Mimi?

But as he sang and played, saw five minutes of his charm and talent, Taichi grew more infuriated. "What about him?" he spat, now trying to be his calmest.

"He's Mimi's ex," answered Yamato, as he looked to each of his friends. "Jyou, are you listening?"

"Ahhh.. Sorry.." said Jyou, looking up from his mobile phone. "Wait, what?"

"The ex Mimi talks about." Repeated Yamato, a bit annoyed. _What's up with you, Jyou?_ He stared at him again, the one that made Jyou uncomfortable.

"I think I need another drink." spoke Taichi right after he emptied his glass. He was angry, didn't know how Mimi could still go to such a place as if he had made her lonely – _what is it that I'm doing wrong?_

Yamato stared at him, a bit sorry and regretful. "I just thought you had the right to know," he said. "I know I shouldn't be saying this but I kind of caught her going here a lot."

"I see.." he looked away from the guy, leaned on his chair as he closed his eyes. The problem was, he'd never confront Mimi about it. He didn't know how. "Thanks."

"Are you okay?"

"Yamato, how am I supposed to be okay? Haha." replied Taichi as he held his empty glass. It was incredible, how things in his life were completely heading downhill_. A first for everything, I guess_. "Just give me another drink, yeah?"

The night grew and so did Yoshio's songs. Taichi eventually got sloshed, also finally found the words he needed to let out. The thing about Taichi was he seldom had the tears. No one, not even Hikari or Sora, could remember the last time Taichi had cried.

For Yamato and Jyou, it was the first time in a long time since they've heard him talk about his feelings. Rare did such a moment came, for when Taichi does talk about his feelings, he becomes really, really, really fragile, that it was so impossible to crack in a butt joke.

He did cry at the end. _A tear or two,_ noted Yamato.

"He seems to be handling it pretty bad.." said Jyou, staring at Taichi's flushed sleeping face and sloppy figure. "Was it necessary to bring him here?"

"I thought he should know," said Yamato as he took a sip from his glass. "He's Mimi's boyfriend, after all,"

Jyou looked back at Taichi, then to Yamato. "Ahh.. I know you're just doing this to look out for them but… ahh. Shouldn't you keep yourself out of it and just let them work on it?"

"But it won't work if it's just them, Jyou." Replied the blond as he motioned his head to Yoshio, who was still on-stage. Like Taichi, the insecurity in him was growing too. "They can be happy.. They just need some help."

"Ahh.. whatever you say.." replied Jyou. He took his glass and hesitantly drank from it. "I'm just warning you though.. you told Mimi in. She might find out and your friendship with her might.. you know."

"It won't, Jyou. Don't worry about it."

"Okay.." Jyou looked at the stage. I guess they're so popular here now. They watched Yoshio and his band play three more songs, before Yamato spoke to him again.

"Jyou,"

"Yamato?"

"Are you and Sora dating?"

To Jyou, the question was so outrageous, he almost dropped his glass. "Wha-what the hell?! W-wha..What? What a despicable thing to say – God, of all things Yamato you know I would – "

"Tch..You pretty much gave a lot with just that." replied Yamato with a sarcastic smile. "But no, really. Just be honest will you? You and Sora?"

For the first time the whole night, Jyou took off his glasses, placed them on the table. "No, Yamato," he growled. "There's nothing going on between me and your ex."

But Yamato knew better. And he was a bit angry that Jyou was actually lying to him. "Fine. I'll take that for now."

It was frustrating to be accused of such. How could Yamato even accuse him of something?_ Maybe there really is nothing left for me here. _"We have, however, been hanging out quite frequently."

It was a cheap shot, Jyou had to admit – and rather immature of him as well, but he really wanted to get to know what Yamato could draw from him.

"Oh.." the sudden admission took him off-guard. "I see." _It always starts from there_, thought Yamato.

"I don't mean to offend you or anything, but is this why you called me in? For this?"

"Huh?"

"To try to get me drunk, and then ask me about Sora," spat Jyou. "Is that what this is all about?"

"What the hell?" he couldn't help but lean back out of disbelief. And Jyou, without his glasses, looked ten-times angrier than the usual. "Of course not! I only just noticed a while ago. You were so into your phone. I saw her name," defended Yamato.

Jyou's features softened, but he was still angry. "I see.."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"You tell me, Mr. Friendship,"

"Jyou.." _Really, some more drama?_ "What is it? Just tell me."

Jyou took his glass again, drank and emptied it. He looked at the spectacles that he took off. Anger had turned into sadness. "I don't think I have friends."

_What the fuck._ The blond glared at him. _Really, Jyou? Afte all this time?_ But Yamato just couldn't bring himself to attack him back. "That really hurt."

"Did it?" chuckle Jyou. "Good."

Yamato sighed, looked away from him; unable to read _whatever the fuckery _Jyou had been thinking. "Are you angry?"

"What does it look like?"

"I find it hard to tell, to be honest.." All Yamato could tell was that he's not all right. "Can you just say if you are or not?"

Jyou crossed his arms, still not looking at him. He looked to his right instead, where Taichi was peacefully sleeping. "I am. I'm angry.. what you just asked me.. it's condescending."

Yamato ran a hand through his hair, unable to release his frustration. "No.. I just care,"

"But do you, really?" Jyou snapped, now facing Yamato with calm yet furious eyes. "Care to think about it for once, Ishida..?"

Blue met blue. Such was the storm in Jyou's dark blue eyes. It was Yamato's turn to look away.

Jyou continued on. "I don't think it crosses in anyone's minds that maybe I need some comforting too.. No, scratch that. I don't need it.. Haha. No.. But it'd be really nice if my friends relied on me from time to time.. ever since I got into college no one had bothered to ring me or whatever.."

"Why is it like that though…" his voice came much calmer, sad than angry. "I'm just a year older than most of you and yet I can't help but feel so out of place… Takeru and Hikari don't seem to have a problem fitting in.." and when Jyou had said it, he realized soon enough how pathetic he sounded. Pathetic, but he couldn't give a damn about being pathetic now.

"If it weren't for Sora, I guess I wouldn't even be here sitting with you and him here.." he added with a smile, and Yamato noticed the slight curve on his lips when he mentioned her name.

"I don't know. Since Mimi's birthday, there's just so much that has changed." _And I don't even know how they all got into that_.. he took whatever that was left in the whisky, poured some of it for him, and for Yamato. "I hate to say this, Yamato, but it feels that I don't know any of you anymore."

"Ahh.." Yamato was still trying to register everything he said, completely shocked at this revelation. So shocked that he almost couldn't find some words to say.

"You're right." but he still felt that it was also a very harsh thing for Jyou to say. "Things are not the way they were.. But –"

"It just sucks to be left out, you know," cut off Jyou. "But maybe it's my fault as well. I couldn't move on. I'm still stuck with that adolescent mentality."

"No you're not.."

"I'm growing up too soon. I'm getting papers published, running parts of the family business, I'm on an excellent internship.." he started to play with his fingers, already running out of words. From sadness, Jyou could now only feel shame. "Ahh., I don't even know if this is what I want,"

"Ahh.." Yamato ran a hand through his hair, let out a really deep sigh. "I'm sorry."

It hurt. It was the cold truth that he could not understand what Jyou was going through, and probably never will, only until a year or two. Only when Jyou is over with his own problems - only will he truly understand, once he enters the same phase in a few months' time. The familiar feelings of helplessness and being unable to do anything for a friend – he really hated those.

"Sorry. It's not surprising though. I haven't really spoken about any of this 'til now.. Except Sora, I guess." he explained, putting back his glasses.

"Sora.." It was only now had it dawned to Yamato that it was only Sora who really kept in touch with him. "During our break-up.. You're the person Sora was closest to." Because, who else but Jyou? With Taichi too busy running after Mimi, and Mimi being too busy being his best friend; who else could withstand Takenouchi Sora and all of the feelings she have with her?

Sora and Jyou – _they were both lonely._

"You're Sora's best friend."

"I guess you could call it that way," noted Jyou, as he looked over at Taichi – the known best friend of Takenouchi Sora. _Then there's Mimi, too_. "It just felt nice to be needed."

They shared a moment of silence, enjoying the rare calmness of the bar as the band had already finished playing. Jazz started to play. Jyou could hear the saxophones, then the sound of a harmonica, which made him remember the time he and Yamato got stuck in a restaurant at the Digital World. Some of those nights they stayed there, he'd hear Yamato play his instrument. He was no person of art or music – but he immediately recognized beauty whenever he heard Yamato play. Gomamon would tell him how different they are, and how he should learn a thing or two about relaxing from Yamato. _There's no need_, he'd tell Gomamon, for Yamato understood why he was such a worrywart. Gomamon would then tell him that Yamato is still more likable than him – _especially with the girls_ – but will say that he preferred Jyou over anyone else.

The memory made him smile, and his heart ached a bit. _That little bastard.._

"Ahh…" Yamato leaned over the table, still trying to come to terms with what just happened. "You said quite a lot," he was so unguarded, unprepared for it. "I didn't know you felt all of this.. Ahh. I'm sorry."

The thing was, ever since Yamato learned Mimi's past and finally considered her a true friend, he had sworn to himself to give his relationships constant upkeep. So, what Yamato could not accept was how Jyou managed to say all those things, when they talked often even when he was already ahead of them for college. _But I guess I just really never listened to him._

The blue-haired man could only feel disgusted of himself for having to put his friend in an awkward situation. Though, he could say the weight of his chest got lighter. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean any harm, you know. I didn't.. I didn't want to blow up like that all of the suddenly. But you kept asking, and you told me to be honest.. so.. haha.. there it goes, I guess."

"Ahh.. I'm sorry.." it was all Yamato could say.

"I'm sorry.. Ahh.. It's not a big deal now.." said Jyou, apologetically smiling. His smile fell suddenly as he took his bag with him and started to look for his medicine. "Ahh.. I hope I'm not drunk. I need to take you guys home."

Yamato snickered._ Jyou and his paranoia._ "Despite your uncalled-for emotional disclosure, Jyou, I don't think you are."

"He's right, Yamato," piped in a knocked out Taichi. "He can't get drunk,"

Yamato and Jyou exchanged worried glances. "Have you been listening to any of what we were saying?" asked Jyou.

"Of course I was," hiccupped Taichi as he lifted his head from the table. "That Yoshioka guy, right?"

They sighed out of relief as Taichi retreated to his former position. "Thank God he's a drunken idiot." said an eased Yamato.

"We should take him home," said Jyou, already taking money from his wallet to pay for the stuff they ordered. Yamato copied him. "Despite your good intentions, Yamato, this was a pretty terrible idea." He said with a smile.

The blond only smiled back.

On their way back to the van, Taichi managed to save some energy to talk about Mimi and his father half-Japanese and half-gibberish. One block away felt like twelve as Yamato and Jyou had to keep Taichi from falling and from vending machines.

Taichi immediately went back to sleep once he hit the backseat of the van. The ride on the way to the Yagami residence was quiet.

"Jyou,"

"Yes, Yamato?"

_How bothersome,_ he thought, taking notice of how calm and polite Jyou was again. Everything Jyou had said earlier was ringing true. Here was the much more familiar Jyou, the Jyou everyone knows. And only now did Yamato realize, that this might be the last time he'd ever see Kido Jyou without the mask.

"I know I may not be able to understand everything.. Ahh.." he trailed off, trying his best to keep his eyes on the window. "What I mean to say is… I'm your friend. I think you already know that."

Jyou smiled. They were the words he never thought he needed to hear. "Remind me again when I forget."

Yamato chuckled, yet still felt bothered. He needed to save the friendships he had left. "I'll beat the hell out of you for it."


	25. Catlike

**Author's Note: **Most of you are right. This actually won't be ending soon. Drafted an outline of how the story will go, and the next big will occur after 10-15 chapters from now (huhu I know the story's slow but hey it's fun). There'll be more Mimato as the story progresses; and I'm definitely promising you guys some happy Michi and Jyoura. For now, enjoy a little Koumi, Mimi/Sora and Koukari friendship.

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-five  
_Catlike_

_._

_._

_Early October_

_._

Nothing irked her more than complicated things. Math has never been Mimi's specialty, and to be honest, she was pretty assured she'd never use it in the future – _her_ future, at least. But she does need to graduate high school, and to do so, she was determined to improve her grades in Calculus, especially after failing two of their quizzes. _Otou-san would not be happy to know._

Thankfully their Math teacher was on sick leave, and Mimi took the chance –

"Wait, what?" Mimi exclaimed as she stared at the number Koushiro just wrote. "Now how did that happen?!"

"Ahh.. You just had to distribute the superscript to the rest of the numbers," he answered, scratching his head with his pen. Koushiro glanced at her squinting closely at his notebook. Her face was so close to him, he swore he could count the number of lashes below her eyes.

"Hmmm.." It took her two minutes to figure out what had just happened. "Ohh. Okay. Yeah. I get it now," she chirped. "Tell me what happens next, _Izumi-sensei_,"

The redhead grunted. They were at that particular item for thirty minutes, and he almost wanted to throw the towel. Koushiro looked at her again, a bit relieved that she hasn't given up. He smiled inwardly. A time like this with her always came so rare nowadays. It was nice to relish it.. _whatever's left in this friendship_.

"Okay, so now, when you get this," he wrote some numbers and a bit of equations and arrows to guide her. "you make your own equations out of this one by crossing each variable," he continued, writing as careful as he could.

Laughter and a bit of banter often came in between their brief tutoring session, and sometimes Mimi just forgets where they left off. Koushiro would eventually lead them back and teach her again, and each moment he did, his rare smile will appear.

It had almost fooled Mimi; that somehow, things between them are becoming better. But sometimes, when she unconsciously asks the same questions (an old habit to break), he'll suddenly snap as if she annoyed him relentlessly. _Embittered_, that's what Mimi thinks, at least. But no one else was as good in Math than Koushiro (Jyou, Sora, and Yamato, too, but they're no longer in high school). Moreover, she saw this as an opportunity to save their friendship.

The tutoring lasted until the school bell rang. Their classmates slowly disappeared; by the end there only remained two.

The redhead slowly packed his things. He wondered if Mimi would be cheating on Taichi if she agrees to come with him to grab a snack. _It wouldn't be cheating, because she doesn't feel anything for me_, he thought. And they still could be friends.. _Right? Even Yamato could do it._

_Still.._ knowing he can't spend time with her without thinking of romance, he realized his intentions weren't sincere. He'd only end up falling deeper than he already is. _You should always know better, Izumi._

With that, he brushed off the thought and decided to just go straight home.

"Kou-kun," called Mimi as she put the last item (her notebook) inside her bag. "You should come with us."

Koushiro blinked a few times. "With whom?"

"Taichi and I," she answered, smiling. "Taichi won't say it, but he misses you. He asks a lot about you."

"Oh, no! It's fine," he replied abruptly. He was waving his hands, telling her not to bother. Some weekend ago when he met up with Sora, he had found out about Taichi's father, and that he has been working part-time.. "You and Taichi-kun rarely get to spend time together,"

"We meet three times week," she giggled, her hand placed under her chin. "Come on, Izumi."

_Three times a week?_ He wondered how Taichi could balance it all out. Koushiro's concern deepened, but then again, he found it was just rude of him to ask, especially since he's been keeping a distance from him and Mimi for a while now.

"Ahh.. No.. I really rather not," he pleaded as he carried his bag with him. "I need to do something,"

Mimi soon realized he was definitely avoiding her. Her and Taichi. "You're lying. We just finished homework together earlier. You're lying," she growled, her forehead wrinkling down.

"I'm not," he replied. _Thank God the classroom is empty. _Fearing her anger, he began to walk away from her and went for the door. "I just need to do some errands."

_Excuses and more excuses,_ she thought bitterly. It made her more furious that he wasn't even looking at her. She was sick of having to put up with his indifference.

"Why are you acting this way?" she spat loudly. "You're not like this."

"_Tachikawa-san.."_ Koushiro turned around, saw her already on the verge of tears. _Why do I always see you like this? _ It was unfair that he couldn't do anything about it. So, he said instead, "Can you talk properly without having to shout at anyone?"

_What the fuck! _ "You've been avoiding me for months!"

"We eat together with the others," he cried, but his voice was still too soft to match hers. "We sit beside each other, too!"

She paused, looked down to her shoes, and then to the other end of the room where he stood. The empty classroom was dimly lit by the afternoon sun. She knew that after high school he'll be far away, and probably cut her off. Like the day, it seemed that he was already bidding goodbye.

_Kou-kun.. _she was losing him, and she knew that he knew that too. _Do you really not notice?_ "It's not the same anymore."

"Mimi.." Even so, he knew where she was coming from. He wanted to be okay. He wanted for things to go back the way they were used to – but it still hurt. If only, he thought, if only his heart was as smart as his mind. "You're asking too much."

He couldn't see it clearly , but he was sure she broke into tears as her head went down.

_How could you even ask me this?_, was what he truly wanted to hurt more that she never considered the weight of his feelings.

He attempted to smile at her out of spite, but it only lasted a split second. Koushiro turned around – _ja matashita_, he calmly said. Mimi kept calling his name, demanding answers between her tears. _Always the princess,_ he remembered. He remembered those times that _really_ – he was the only one she had when she was away; remembered that only he truly made great efforts to keep her from being lonely; remembered the midnights he was up for to comfort her when she gets doubtful of the people around her. _But Mimi doesn't seem to remember. _

He closed the door behind him. He was pretty sure, that after all this time, he loved her the most._ Always._

"You should have known that." And so it remains, the slowest goodbye he has to say.

Back inside their classroom, Mimi had sat back down to her seat as she mindlessly looked at her phone.

"I'm sorry," she muttered under her breath as she sent the message. She looked outside the window to see Koushiro's figure disappear from her sight. She rested her head on her table again, stared at her phone as she waited for Taichi to reply; ten minutes when he did.

"_Okay. Just rest up for today, then. Let's meet soon! :3"_

Upon reading his message, Mimi stood up from her seat and swung her bag with her as she exited the room. She looked around the hallway, remembered how Taichi, Yamato, and Sora would pick her and Koushiro up from their classroom, and they'd all get together for some snack after school. She, Sora, and Koushiro would always get chocolate from the nearest convenience store, while Taichi and Yamato would get spicy ramen. Now she barely had any fond memories of her and Koushiro, apart from sharing the lunch table with Hikari and the rest. Nowadays, only she, Hikari, Daisuke, and Miyako had been eating together.

She passed by the other rooms, the library and the stairways that had become so familiar to her in less than a year. He was always there for her, even when he didn't understand her most of the time. She wondered now, if she really took him for granted, to the point she could no longer save their friendship. It was at this, when Mimi realized that she has been really lonely.

"Goodness," she scolded herself as she wiped her eyes as she stood on front of the school gate. Looking back up while eyes still clouded with tears, she immediately recognized the figure that stood on front of her. Mimi's eyes became rounder.

"Mimi-chan," greeted Sora. She wore a flowery shirt and an apologetic smile. "you look so much prettier with a smile."

Without a second thought, Mimi ran to her arms.

* * *

"I really thought you have already forgotten about me." the brunette pouted playfully. Kidding aside, she did think Sora had already forgotten her.

Ashamed, the redhead looked to her shoes and bit her lip. "Ahh.. I'm sorry.. I didn't mean to.." she apologized, still looking for her words. "You know I was trying to sort things with myself.."

"Mhmm.." Mimi was willing to look past through it, though, she could still remember the unpleasant feelings she held because of Sora's uninformed absence. "But.. Don't you ever do that to me again! I've been messaging you for the whole month!"

"I promise," reassured Sora. Mimi smiled in return. "I did sort things out at the end,"

"Ohh, really?"

"Yeah.." Sora looked to her left and right, wondering where they should hang out so they could catch up. They have already reached the commercial area. "But where do you want to go first? My feet are killing me already."

"You're tired already?"

"I played some football yesterday with the former team," she said, laughing. "Really though, where do you want to go?"

Mimi decided to go for ice cream, and they went to the nearest ice cream parlor around. And to which ice cream parlor Mimi took her, was exactly where Sora feared. _Of all places, Mimi.._ she thought rather bitterly.

"Does it have to be this place?" asked Sora, looking at the very familiar store. "And there's only pizza and salad here."

"Sora, I want ice cream, and you said it's my call," The brunette dragged her inside, and they took a seat by the window. It was exactly at the same spot Sora had dumped Yamato, and she couldn't help but feel paranoid that the blond might bust in at any moment.

"Okay, I presume you want ice cream, but what else do you want to eat?" asked Sora, taking her wallet from her bag.

But Mimi, who still can't get over the fact that she's finally talking to Sora again, had her head somewhere else, even forgetting Izumi Koushiro and her great breakdown earlier. "Sora, did you know I miss you a lot?"

"Mimi, I missed you too, but I'm here now," replied Sora, brushing off Mimi's cheesiness. Not that Sora didn't like it, but she really wanted to talk to her so badly already. "So what do you want?"

"Ice cream, and grilled cheese on pita," the brunette answered cheerfully.

"Okay. Wait here." The redhead sped to the counter as she ordered their food. It only took a minute for their food to get prepared, and Sora came back with their ice cream, and two orders of grilled cheese.

"Thank you Sora-chan," said Mimi, now piercing her spoon to her perfectly-shaped ice cream. _Strawberries and kiwi._ It made her slightly happy that Sora didn't forget her favorite flavor. "So…what is it that you've figured out?"

"Well.." Sora, unknowingly, was smiling the whole time as she ate her ice cream. "I'm going to fashion school."

The reaction from Mimi was very satisfying. "Oh my God! That's so awesome!" exclaimed the brunette. "Oh my, Sora, that's so awesome, I can't wait for you to make me clothes!"

The ginger laughed. "Yeah, but see, it almost took me forever to know what I want," said Sora. She started to narrate her soul-search, as she likes to put it – how she actually climbed mountains and went river-rafting with some random people at a sports club. The tale amused Mimi a lot, and the more she found out about what happened to Sora for the whole month, the more she envied her.

"It must have been nice," said Mimi, still giggly from all the excitement. "I want to do that too,"

"But really, I wouldn't have found out what I wanted to do if it weren't for Taichi."

Mimi's smile instantly froze. "Taichi? You guys met?" _You met with Taichi first and not me?_, was what she truly wanted to say.

"Yeah. We did," replied Sora, her smile also disappearing from her lips as she remembered Taichi and his secret. "Ahh.. he was asking for something."

"You met with Taichi first, and not me," spoke Mimi, a bit saddened. "Why? I thought we're okay, Sora,"

_Oh shit._ She was now more compelled to tell Mimi. "Mimi, no, what are you talking about?"

The brunette pushed her now half-done grilled cheese away, then leaned on her seat.

"You met with Taichi first. You didn't even call or reply to my messages, Sora,"

An awkward silence came in. Sora looked around. The streets were already crowded with people, all rushing to either go home or to the nearest _izakaya_. It was Friday, after all. By now Taichi would have probably went to the hospital already, and here's his girlfriend not knowing a thing about it. After gaining enough conviction, she decided to tell Mimi.

"Mimi,"

"Mhmm?" Mimi didn't even glance, and only continued to stare through the window with the same blank expression.

"Taichi didn't want you to know this, because he didn't want to worry you," she said, now crossing her arms as she looked down to her food. "But.."

"What is it?" Mimi could only worry more of what Sora had to say. Was Sora going to say she and Taichi went to Ueno Park again, the same thing that pushed Yamato's buttons back then? _For the love of God, please let me be able to handle it,_ she told herself. To be jealous – was something Mimi never wanted to feel.

Sora ran a hand through her hair. She knew very well it wasn't her place to say it to Mimi, but knowing Taichi, Mimi might never get to know. _Taichi, you idiot. _

"Taichi's father – ojii-san.." it felt heavy to be the bearer of the news. It felt heavier to know that Mimi was finding this out from her, and not Taichi. And the more she talked about Taichi, the accident, the bills, and his new parttime job at the flower shop, the look on Mimi's face only turned more painful to see.

So when Sora ended her big reveal, Mimi could only cry and apologize –

"I'm sorry.."

again,

"I'm so sorry,"

and again.

* * *

The day was wearing out, and Koushiro could already feel the cold. Of course, he didn't head straight home after the confrontation with Mimi. So here he was, alone at the convenience store where _they_ usually had hung out, with a three empty and two unopened tetra-boxes of chocolate soya milk surrounding his table.

_It's not that I want to lose our friendship…_ he thought to himself as he rewound the events at the classroom earlier. He wondered if he should have just endured it a little more, if he could have just gone off with her and Taichi and keep pretending he didn't hold these feelings for her. Besides, after graduation, he'd have all the time in the world to forget his feelings.

He pressed his straw to another box of his milk, then sipped. _Shame,_ it was only by then he could truly start moving on. And what he'd regret the most, he told himself, was that he had let his own feelings get in the way of his friendship with Taichi. _Taichi,_ of all people. _He must hate me now, too._

The redhead was in his inner monologue for another fifteen minutes, until a sight of a stray cat on the gutter took his attention. The creature was playing all by itself, pouncing through the air as it rolled its body around several times. He started to wonder if all cats really are inherently better off alone. _Maybe it's because they're inherently lone hunters like most of the Felidae family? _He told himself as he inferred more from his stock knowledge. It was the first time he really gave much thought about cats, so he watched the cat some more, as it started to prowl to an invisible enemy. Whatever it was, he sure found the sight to be entertaining and hypnotizing.

After a few more minutes, he finally pulled his gaze away from the cat. Startled he became, when he looked up to his left and saw Taichi's younger sister taking a photo of the same cat.

_How funny_, he thought with an amused look on his face. Hikari then returned the look, and waved at him. He waved back while she stood up and went inside the store to sit with him.

_Dear Lord,_ he thought in fear. It was as if his social skills were being tested again.

"Koushiro-san," she greeted. Her smile fell short when she saw the cartons of milk on his table. "Oh my, won't you get diarrhea for this lot?"

"No.. I'm okay, Hikari-chan." Koushiro gave an awkward smile, gave her the last box of milk. He wanted to ask what she was doing alone at the city, but then again, he seemed to already know the answer. _Hikari the Cat Lady._

The brunette thanked him and popped the hole of the carton with a straw. "Ahh.. I haven't been seeing you at lunch table nowadays, Koushiro-san," she said as she sipped. "You've been busy?"

"Ahh.." the redhead scratched his head, unsure of what to say. He and Hikari had never been too close. Nor were they close enough to confide to each other about their lives. "Yeah. I was."

"Ohh.." _Right, I almost forgot,_ thought Hikari. If there was anyone quieter than she is, it was Koushiro. "Okay."

Small talk – they both hated it, but it was inevitable. The silence only grew, and only their sipping and the music from the radio could be heard. Both facing the window, they watched the same cat from earlier hunt its food from the trash bin.

Though Hikari had barely said anything apart from the fact that the cat was adorable, he could tell a change of her behavior.

He could already infer from her face that she was sad, despite her calmness and the gentle smile on her lips. Though he knew so little about the matters of the heart, he wasn't that heartless, and surely not dumb to not even recognize.

Koushiro wondered if it had something to do with Takeru again, seeing that the boy had been distant with the group nowadays and had only been hanging out with Ken and some random girls. He was sure it was something more than just her dad getting into the accident.

Perhaps if he were like Yamato or Jyou, he'd ask her how she was and offer her advice. But he always found it rude to even say such (and Koushiro admits he isn't that reliable when it came to advice either). More so, his concern is unsolicited; and it seems, neither Mimi nor the others know anything about the accident.

He took another sip from his milk. _Again, none of my business._

"Hehe," she giggled as she took a long slurp. The cat had already went away, and night had already fallen. "Well, I better get going, Koushiro-san. Thank you for the drink,"

"Ohh," He was surprised. Another one to note, she was unbelievably quieter than her usual. "Okay,"

"Koushiro-san," she was packing her camera and equipment inside the school bag. "I hope you visit onii-san soon. He's kind of lonelier.. if you know what I mean."

He had almost choked from his drink, and looked at her with surprise and shame. He wondered if she had always known. "Ahh.. yeah.. I hope so too," he said, trying to match her smile.

"Ahh.. I'm sorry Koushiro-san," she apologized with a soft giggle. "I'll be going now. I need to help oka-san in a while."

"Okay.." A bit distracted, he wondered now, too, if he should return the display of concern. _Make it up to Hikari for the sake of Taichi_, even just a bit.

_A little hint won't hurt, right? _So before Hikari was about to leave, Koushiro gathered all of his energy to say –

"Hikari-chan.." he spoke. "Please say hi to _oji-san_ for me.. and I'm sorry I haven't visited him."

She almost lost grip of her bag, forgetting she had a gadget inside. "W-what.."

Koushiro awkwardly smiled and tried to comfort her as her startled eyes started to well up. _Great , you made a girl cry again, Izumi,_ he scolded to himself. _Well.. you're just as surprised as I was._ In Hikari's case though, she wasn't as good as he is in hiding feelings.

More importantly, she was just standing there, frozen and silent, her head faced down. He didn't know what was going on until he could hear her sniffling.

_What do I do? _The redhead looked around nervously, saw that the cashier was watching them. It took three minutes for Hikari sit back to where she sat earlier. At this state, she couldn't go home appearing like this on front of her mother.

"Koushiro-san," she spoke, her voice still cracking. "Ahh. I'm sorry.. I was just a bit surprised.."

"Ahh.. it's okay.." he said, rummaging through his pockets for his handkerchief. He forgot that he didn't bring one today. He bit his lip, a bit unsure. "Umm.. do you want to talk about it?"

It was only now that Hikari have heard Koushiro ask such a thing. To be honest, she really didn't want to cry over her dad or Takeru again, nor even talk about it. But rare such a moment came, she felt obliged.

"Ahh.. just.. you know.. it's been hard.." she said in between hiccups, and also managed to chuckle. "Ahh.. I didn't want to tell anyone because otou-san doesn't like to be pitied… Ahh.. I was handling the accident pretty well until.." Hikari paused, already feeling her eyes well up and throat about to choke.

"Ahh.. I'm sorry.." Koushiro felt bad now that he asked. He really didn't like to see girls crying. Apart from Mimi, seeing Hikari cry was akin to animal cruelty – or so he thinks. Though they're not that close, he always saw her as a sister. Whenever he went over to Taichi, she was always hanging around with them, and tried to keep up with whatever they were doing, even in video games.

"No.. Ahh. It's alright," she said, recovering from an almost-outburst of tears. "I don't know if you notice, Koushiro-san, but, Takeru-kun and I.."

Another pause, another deep breath, before she continued on. "Takeru-kun rejected me some weeks ago."

"Really?" Though he asked calmly, he said it really fast, and by the look on his face, even shocked. _How on earth.. What?_ He didn't get it. He never knew much whatever's going on between Takeru and Hikari, but he was so sure they liked each other.

"He rejected me," she repeated, sighing as she hugged her bag. She looked at the window, saw that it was almost nighttime.

Koushiro scratched his head, still confused. Logic could not explain it to him. He was so sure Takeru had told him he liked Hikari.._ or maybe I interpreted it wrong? _

"Ahh.. I hope you don't mind me asking, and I hope it's not too intrusive, Hikari-chan," he carefully said. "But.. why would Takeru reject you..?Ahh..I mean.. I sort of thought.. it was mutual.." his voice got smaller as he went further.

"He did, he did say he likes me.." she said, remembering what happened again. After what happened at the hallway, she had begun to avoid him. "Ahhh.. but he said he didn't want to be together."

_How could that even be.._ he didn't understand the logic behind it. _Ahh.. I guess Takeru has his reasons I do not know of.. _but still, he couldn't help but feel sorry for her. "H-how.. how complicated.." he only managed to say.

"Yeah.." Hikari still could not believe that she was capable of doing something like that. "And I kind of.. I kind of broke down… and.. I don't know. I did something that so unlikely of me.."

Remembering it again, she could feel her eyes sting for the nth time. _Ahh.. maybe I wasn't ready to talk about it yet.. _And realizing that she had poor control of her feelings on front of Koushiro, she felt reprehensible.

"Ahh. This is so embarrassing. I'm so shameful. I'm sorry, Koushiro-san," she apologized as she bowed to him.

"Don't be.." he assured, giving her an awkward pat on the shoulder. "I'm sorry I asked."

_It must have been pretty bad for her to be riled up like this… _he thought to himself as he looked at her staring into nothingness. _To think Hikari's only fifteen. _He knew Hikari dealt with things quietly, and now that she actually opened up to him – _me, of all people_ – meant that she was carrying a lot of weight too much for her to deal with. He wondered how Taichi's been dealing with it now too. Being the man of the house for the moment while also being a son _– it must have been difficult for him._

Hikari had found herself talking more than she thought she'd be; she talked more about the thing with Takeru in full detail, and about how she felt still utterly useless around the house while also being spent of being a kid.

All in all, Koushiro could only try to empathize_. _Trying to show that he does was really difficult for him, so he only managed to repeat different versions of _'I'm sorry about that' _and _'it's all going to be all right'._

It wasn't until it was already seven-thirty in the evening they decided to leave the convenience store, and accompanied Hikari to the train station.

"Ahhh.. I didn't expect to burst out like that," she said, still embarrassed. "But thank you for hearing me out, Koushiro-san."

"No problem, Hikari-chan," he said, who also not expected his day to end with a heart-to-heart talk (with Hikari, of all people). "Ahh.. I'm sorry I made you go through all that,"

Hikari smiled, shared the walk with enjoyable silence. By the time they reached the station, something started to bother her. She was about to pass the turnstile.

"Koushiro-san," she said. At this rate, she thought there wasn't any shame left for her to ask such. "I hope you don't mind, but.. how do you feel about my brother and Mimi-chan..?"

Now this time, he was prepared. He sighed in defeat and gave an awkward smile, hoping she won't force him to talk about it. "Do you really want me to start on that?"


	26. Romantic Comedy

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-six  
_Romantic Comedy_

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_Saturday_

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She flipped on her back, exposing her skin. Mimi giggled some more, until the brunet pulled her back to face him, already having enough of her teasing.

"Mimi.."

"What?" she snickered as she licked her lips. "You said you wanted a break,"

He needed a break, a breather from all the kissing, thrusting, and moving around– but how can he even take one, when she was just _so damn beautiful and good at everything?_ He won't say it, of course.

Taichi placed himself on top of her, holding her wrists gently while studying her flustered face. "You think I'd stop there?"

"Oh," she blinked a few times, then smiled eagerly. "There's more?"

He chuckled, somewhat felt happy when she said that. She liked it, and he was more than pleased to give more.

Today wasn't one of those days they have planned – Mimi came by his house as soon as she found out he didn't have any classes for the day, and that Hikari and _oka-san_ would be out the whole day.

Mimi for breakfast, Mimi for lunch – hopefully for dinner as well. It was one of the rare, amazing Saturdays he had since college.

He leaned over, planted gentle kisses on her neck and then teased her with his tongue while his hands traveled around _places_, before completely pulling away.

It left Mimi surprised, her mouth, gaping. "Wha.."

Taichi snickered, threw her a look. She sat up – his blanket still draped around her body like a Greek goddess in a toga – and wrapped her arms around his torso. "You're sixteen, right?"

"I just turned seventeen last summer," she snapped. "Why?"

"Nothing." It wasn't. He wondered if they should even be doing this, afraid something might trigger her - especially now that he knows Mimi could run on to his rockstar oboyfriend anytime. _Hah. As if I'd let her go with that pedophile._

"You think you're so cool, Yagami," she pouted, while feeling his toned and bony hips. _As expected of Taichi._ "How lucky of you for your professor to ditch class today,"

"He doesn't usually attend our classes," he said, holding her arms. "it's just a prerequisite for my thesis."

Mimi didn't understand much of what he was talking about, and couldn't care much about his thesis; so she nuzzled her head against his back, then kissed him softly on his right shoulder, then on his nape. His libido stoked once again, he turned around, charged to push her back to bed – his hands, lips, and head moving around on her body, ready to devour her for again for the third time, until his phone rang.

A long, defeated sigh_. How timely._

Seeing it came from his mother, it all went down so fast from there, and Mimi instantly felt the difference.

Pulling himself away from her hold, he leaned back on his bed, arms folded across his chest, eventually spacing off. Still holding the blanket around her, she watched him, eager for him to say something, but was defeated by her own impatience.

"Is there something wrong?" Mimi was ninety-percent sure, that it was what exactly Sora had told her yesterday.

He snapped off of his daydream immediately. "Ahhh.." he was smiling while fumbling over his words. "No.. nothing's wrong."

But Mimi knew better. She knew better this time, and had enough of him pretending. "You're such a liar," she retorted harshly while putting back her undergarments roughly. "You're always keeping something from me."

He didn't say anything back – too preoccupied to even reply. He wasn't that bothered with her words until she started to pack her things as well. "You're going now?"

How was it, she thought, that after _that_, can she feel so alone? And she was starting to feel really bitter that Sora knew it first. _You won't even tell me what's going on. _She considered of just telling him that she knows, but realized it wouldn't count as anything if it didn't come from him first.

"Ahhh.. you seem like you want to be alone right now." she replied, now calmer, also lonelier.

"I'm sorry.." he said, crawling to her and took her hand to stop her. _Ahh.. I guess I really have to tell her.._

The only thing he could hope for now is, for things to remain the same between them. "You're right.. Ahh.. I haven't been honest."

Mimi stopped packing her things, and then crawled next to him, looking intently into his own russet eyes. There she saw his fear.

"What are you going to say?" she demanded, cornering him at the edge of his bed. She was starting to fear that he might lie to her, which was definitely going to be a deal breaker if he did. "What, are you pansexual? Is there someone else?" she prompted, feeling foolish afterwards. _This is so low and unnatural, Mimi. _

"A-ah no! No.." he stammered, trying to find his words, also trying to understand what pansexual meant. But it was so much simpler to just say - "There's no one else," – and it was the truth.

"What is it then?" she asked, already anxious of Taichi's answer. It was so obvious that he was trying to hide it from her, and she just couldn't keep her cool any longer. _Great, Mimi. Acting skills are so on right now._

He looked at her hesitantly, concerned with the next look on her face when he says it. Knowing Mimi, she'll gasp out of shock; her curious face will turn troubled, and will follow through with several apologies, just like how everyone else had reacted. But he knew lying about it would only make things worse for the long term. _Besides.._ he thought hopefully. _Mimi values sincerity more than anything else. _

To put his faith on her was one of the wisest decisions he had ever made so far.

"My dad got into an accident a few weeks ago," it came off of him so naturally, he didn't even shake. And Mimi, who was pretending she knew nothing about the accident, could no longer hold her tears.

In an instant, she was already back in his arms, holding her as she wept. Rubbing her back, he noticed that she wasn't done with zipping her dress up, since he could feel the hook of her undergarment and her bare skin. It felt nice, and she smelled nice, too – _like strawberries _– and he just wanted to forget everything and lie down with her for a while; and they did, his fingers playing hers and her hair while she clung to him as if her life was on the line.

Taichi told her more about the family, the lawsuit, and his dad's current condition. He also told her about looking for a part-time job to help around, and that he sought for Sora's help. He didn't sound like he was having a hard time at all; even managed to insert jokes in between.

"Ahh.. don't cry, Mimi.." he soothed as he hushed her with gentle fingers. The brunette could only tighten her embrace. _Stupid Taichi,_ she thought bitterly.

"You could have told me," she croaked, pulling herself from him, but still lying down with him. "I'd want to help,"

Taichi only looked away, but when he did so, Mimi held his chin so that he could face her, her caramel eyes glaring intensely at him. "You idiot," tears rolled down her cheeks again as she blinked. "I love you."

And right on front of her, she saw his empty eyes turn to fear, guilt, sadness, and helplessness. By the looks of it, it looked like he was about to cry.

He did. And of course he felt embarrassed to have cried on front of a girl. Even more embarrassed, especially now that Mimi turned to be the big spoon among the two of them. _I haven't even cried on front of Sora, _he remembered, completely shocked that he was crying. _Maybe this is what it feels like.. to be truly.._

Taichi turned his head up, saw her in tears again.

He thought she looked really beautiful. It was as if it was really only now did he actually look at her. To really look at her – and notice how her reddened cheeks, nose, and eyes made her glowing. He cursed himself that only now was he realizing how damn lucky he is.

He brushed his fingers over her eyes. _Why do I keep making you cry.._

"You just made me cry, Tachikawa," he chuckled, his hands finding their way to hold her by the waist. "Now I'm a crybaby like you,"

The girl finally sat up, crossed her arms as she looked at him with sternly. "Yagami, what's the point of having me around if you won't tell me how you feel?"

Still lying on the bed, Taichi flipped to his right so that his back was facing her. "That's kind of the problem.." He was never really good at feelings. It sucked, and to think this was his first serious relationship. "Ahh.. I'm sorry. I'm doing badly at this boyfriend thing am I?" he said, peeping over his shoulder.

Mimi bit her lip. He was right, in some ways – him keeping secrets from her was a big deal – but then again, she knew he only meant well. "Well.." she went over to his ear, her hair tickling his face. "you can make up for it by being more honest with me and by telling me your problems,"

"That's all?" he asked out of surprise. He flipped back again to face her. "No insults or whatever?"

She giggled, laid her head beneath his arm. "What do you want me to do, call you the worst boyfriend ever and ask you to buy me a pony?"

"Well, you are the Princess," he joked, feeling more cheerful now as he looked down to Mimi's smile and reddened eyes. He realized it was the first time he cried about the whole thing, and he felt the weight of his chest had gotten lighter, even forgetting his issues with Mimi going to the bar.

_Maybe that was all I really needed._ And it was all thanks to her. _Taichi, you are goddamn lucky._

"But ahh.. thank you for everything. And I 'm sorry for everything as well.." he muttered, gently caressing her face with his fingers. She was starting to feel sleepy from it. "I'll do better,"

She nuzzled her face against his chest, savoring the smell of citrus and pine. "I sort of feel bad now because we spent the whole day doing _stuff_ to each other than visiting your dad,"

"You can come with me later tonight," he offered. "I'll take you home afterwards."

She hugged him tighter. "Okay."

"Hey Mimi,"

"Yeah?"

He leaned over and kissed her on her fruit-scented lips. The very next thing Taichi said was the moment Mimi had finally believed she had moved on from her past. She'd remember this memory for a very long time:

"I love you."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Taichi's scent is of citrus and pine, something that is like David Beckham's Homme. Hahahahaha Taichi u sucker. Anyway. I hope you enjoyed this one. Tri gave me Michi feels to go by when I wrote this.


	27. Red and Blue

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**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-seven  
_Red and Blue_

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_Mid-December _

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It was eight in the evening and the place was getting crowded with students of Todai; most of them had just finished their classes. Soon enough the coffee shop was polluted with chatter and Sora wondered if this was the life she chose to let go of. _A life in Todai?_ With a sudden feeling of being ostracized, she looked the man across her, whose eyebrows were starting to scrunch, making creases in between.

"Do you want to go somewhere else, senpai?" the redhead offered, putting down her Ishiguro Kazuo book on the table before picking up her tea. It had been two hours since they've both exchanged words.

Jyou looked up from his drafting paper and _"Gray's Atlas of Human Anatomy"_, a bit hesitant to say, 'yes'. He was never good at hiding his needs, as much as he wants to. Sora's just very patient and understanding of his fussiness. "You wouldn't mind?"

"It's okay," she replied with a smile. _Poor senpai,_ she sympathized, noticing how stressful he looked.

He sheepishly returned the smile back and nodded. "Thank you Sora-chan," he started to pack his things up (there were a lot), and tried to finish his drink. Sora packed up too, although she didn't have that much lying around. She stared at the scattered paperwork and sketches of the human muscles; compared it to the page Jyou was referring from. "I didn't know you draw,"

"Oh!" Jyou, out of embarrassment, hastily stuffed his documents to his briefcase, picked up his leftover cappuccino.

Sora raised a curious brow, taking in the last drop of her tea before speaking. "You didn't have to do that."

"Ahh.. well.." he scratched his head. _She's right,_ he realized. He didn't really have any reason to be embarrassed about. It wasn't like he's with _Akiyoshi Kira_, his one and only college friend, who also happens to be on the dean's list for semesters now. She was practically good at everything. _No pressure, here, Jyou.. No pressure._ Still, he couldn't help it. "You know I'm not much of an artist."

"Who expects you to be?" the redhead laughed, standing up from her seat. She pushed herself against the sea of people, as she headed for the exit. Jyou followed her closely, holding his briefcase protectively.

_This is named 'Todai Study Café', for kami's sake,_ he thought bitterly. He didn't like how people go to cafes (especially cafes who call themselves 'study cafes') to gossip and chitchat with friends. _It defeats the whole purpose of cafes – study cafes, to be exact,_ he thought, while he squeezed himself in between two seniors as he headed for the door.

Once he got out, he released a deep breath, as if so much energy has been drained way from pushing through the crowd. Jyou always hated crowds, just as much as he hated noise; but he hated nothing more than making a girl compromise for his sake. He thought of it as being 'unmanly', and untraditional. After all, he was the one who invited Sora to this place. Knowing her, she didn't mind the trivial things he cares about – such as the whole concept of 'study cafes' and how customers should only either be studying or doing something quiet. Jyou could not help but wonder now if he somehow ruined her momentum with '_The Artist and the Floating World'_. _She seemed really immersed in it, too.._

"Well, what do you know," chirped Sora. His thought-ramble stopped; he looked at his companion beside him, who was facing skywards.

He looked up too, noticed that it started to snow. Some snowflakes managed to land on his spectacles, blurring his vision. He had to admit, it was unusually calming. "It won't last very long.."

Sora glanced to her side, could not help but let out a giggle and blush over his serene expression. It was very rare. "Yeah.. I'll give it a day or two."

"That's too bad. I like the snow." He lamented, followed by a chuckle. "It's the best time for me to have cocoa."

_That's so odd, _the redhead laughed, and so did he, both aware of his sudden loosened attitude. He was known to be notoriously thrifty, practical, and sparse, but it was the rare moments where he showed his soft-side that made her heart leap. Now that she has thought about it – she's been seeing this side of his side often nowadays. _Too often. _

She didn't know exactly why, but she always found it easier to relate with him more than anyone. Being stereotyped by Takeru as Team Mom and Team Dad together with him wasn't just for nothing. Even here ex, Yamato, knew this, as much as he disliked it.

_Oh stop it, Sora,_ the redhead scolded herself as she snapped out of her reverie. _This is senpai, for crying out loud!_ She took a deep breath, wrapping a white scarf around her neck in a frustrated fashion.

_You're barking up the wrong tree._ She knew Kido Jyou all too well. He wasn't such a mystery to begin with – _unlike Yamato!_ – but heck, she could already tell that this doctor-to-be will still be quite a handful. Probably even more difficult to be with, especially when he reminds her so much of herself.

"You know, I think I've already found out what I wanted to do in my life," she said. They started to walk back to his van, which was parked a kilometer away from where they are. "Taichi and Mimi actually helped me out,"

"That's still going on, huh.." he said with utter discomfort. He still wasn't used to it. "Well anyway, what do you want to do then?"

She snugged her head on her scarf, a bit embarrassed to what she's about to say. "I think I want to take Fashion Design,"

"Ohh," Jyou's blue eyes twinkled under his glasses, enthusiastic over Sora's success in her 'journey'. The past few months had really been tough on her, and he was just more than happy to see her finally figure everything out. "That's great!"

"Yeah," she laughed out of nervousness. "Ahh… what do you think about it?"

"Think about what?"

"Me taking Fashion?"

"Uhh.." Jyou's sight fell on the pavement, unsure how to answer that. "I think it's great!" he smiled.

"But.."

"But what?"

"it's Fashion.." she drifted, as they crossed a street. He had put a protective hand behind her back, and she liked how she always felt safe with him. It was weird, for Yamato was just as protective. But there was just something gentle with how Jyou handled things.

She bit her lip. _I feel so silly._ They were almost near the car park. "I mean, I don't know.. it's Fashion.. it's not like Law, or Medicine.. or Economics.."

Jyou raised his brows, somehow understanding now what she was trying to point out. "I don't think it goes like that, Sora-chan,"

She snorted, gave him a playfully resentful look. "You're just trying to make me feel better.. Doctor."

"Ahh… B-but I'm not.." he said, wondering if he had said anything that offended her. He dropped his briefcase, his grip loosening. "Ahh."

"I'm just joking." She giggled.

"But really.. I don't.. I think it's really awesome you'd want to be a designer." he encouraged with caution. "I mean.. I can't even draw."

"Liar," she teased. "Your butt drawings are masterpieces,"

"Well you know me, I like butts," he played along.

"Cheeky, _senpai_,"

"You asked for it!"

A gust of strong wind grazed at them, and by instinct, Jyou immediately covered her under his arm, waited for the wind to weaken. Both of their eyes tight shut, they withstood the cold of the night. No words were spoken 'til it stopped.

"Brr!" exclaimed Sora, her whole body pattered with snow. "That was terrible!"

Jyou dusted off the snow from his coat and hers, checked on his wristwatch. It was already late, and the weather was starting to look pretty bad.

"The weather," she said, once again stealing his attention. "It's going to be a storm, isn't it? Like the last time?"

"Yeah.." he remembered it was around this time of the year when Mimi came back. It was also during a snowstorm. They continued to walk, with only a few more steps to the parking lot. Jyou didn't think much about the past – he was more of the type to think (and worry) about the future – but he remembered that last year, Sora and Yamato were still together.. _when they were already falling apart. _

But most important of all, it was exactly at that time he and Sora had grown closer. She had helped him through the lonely and mundane days of his already-planned life.

_Yamato.._ he wondered if he had gotten over Sora by now. Both of them looked fine already, but he wondered if Yamato could ever bounce back. He looked at the redhead beside him, wondered how if he was worthy of her.

They have arrived at the parking lot – his blue van very visible as it was the only one left. They went in, fastened their seatbelts.

And in the midst of his cluttered thoughts, he suddenly remembered they haven't had dinner yet.

"Do you want to go to my house for a bit?" he offered, his hands already at the wheel. He wouldn't let her go out without having eaten yet. By his standards, it would have been rude. "I just remembered we didn't have dinner,"

"Ohh," she blushed at his suggestion. "It's alright senpai! You still have a lot of things to do,"

"It's okay Sora-chan," he said, starting the engine of the vehicle. "My house is just a few blocks away. The snow's growing stronger, too."

"Ahh.." maybe it wouldn't hurt. Besides, she wondered what his room really looked like. "Okay."

He drove off, and Sora opened his radio, so casually for she's been in his van many times before. There was nothing but silence and the voice of the radio broadcaster, suggesting a storm tonight.

"Can you believe it? Another blizzard in Tokyo," she exclaimed. She wondered how she'd actually get home tonight, if ever the forecast will happen.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Global warming's so serious now."

She giggled. _Oh senpai.._

No more words were exchanged until they reached the Kido residence. With chilled bodies they rushed inside, took off their wet coats and warmed up with tea.

"Here," he handed her a towel to dry her hair and a cup of tea. He immediately disappeared to the kitchen and prepared stew.

She took a sip, and was surprised to taste earl grey instead of the usual _matcha_. This little detail fascinated her, and drank more. Sora looked around, her eyes memorizing every little fixture in their house. The walls were in cream, the floor in traditional tatami, but the tables and chairs were minimalist. There were several bookshelves and there was barely any space left for more. Frames were also hanging up on their walls: diplomas, awards, and certificates earned. There were barely any pictures, just the two eldest Kidos in their college toga, Jyou in his high school uniform, and a rather old family photo, where Jyou was still in middle school. She reckoned it was taken eight years ago.

She stood up from the couch, followed the aroma of the soup he was making. He wore a pink apron on his turtleneck and slacks. She leaned on the doorjamb, took a sip from her tea.

"Do you need any help?"

"It's fine Sora-chan," he said, glancing at her as he stirred the hot pot. "I'm about to get it finished,"

The redhead blushed. This moment reminded her of Yamato, whom always cooked for her when she was around. Jyou in an apron looked just as good as her ex did. Plus points to Jyou for the pink and the frills.

She sat on their dinner table while looking around. The kitchen looked very minimalist, too, with lots of herbs and spices displayed on the cabinet. She wondered what his mother's cooking tastes like.

"Where's Shuu and Shin-senpai?" she asked, looking up from her cup.

"They're with otou-san at the hospital. They usually come home afterhours," The blue boy had finally turned around, held a metal pot with pink mitts. She tried to hold back her smile, unable to ignore this whole new image of him.

Nonetheless she helped him set up their dinner, and they ate in quiet. Silence was becoming a common thing among them, and it had always been comfortable. She helped him clean up afterwards, and they took another cup of tea as they watched the snow in the living room. The streets were already piled in white, and the precipitation was relentless.

The whole atmosphere was making all of it get over her head and her heart. The minute she thought of actually being with Kido Jyou, the more she was compelled to be bold despite the lack of reasons why she should be. She was already resolved.

_I like him. _That was all the reason she needed. She just wished she had more time to plan it all out.

"S-senpai," she stammered and she noticed it too, now trying with all her might not to freak out. "I need to tell you something,"

"What is it?" he looked at her with blue eyes so visible and transparent, as if he didn't wear any glasses. Worry was on his face. _He probably thinks he's being a bother._

She bit her lip. She didn't plan for this. She didn't have cookies, or cake, or any sort of gift to symbolize her feelings. _When was the last time I did this?!_ She swore she wasn't as nervous.

But Sora knew from her heart that she just had to say it. With a long breath, she held her own hands, gripping the fine knits of her oversized sweater.

"Senpai, ever since last spring, I –"

"_**Gaaaahhhh!"**_ She was cut off by the sudden sound he made. His exclamation came out of nowhere, with his hands running through his hair to mess it all up. It made her jump out of her seat, her heart leaping as if it was in a triathlon. His frustrated expression made her even more frantic.

_What the hell just happened?!_ "I-is everything okay, senpai?"

"N-no," he answered, looking up while holding his head.

The tension was too much for him. It was obvious that whatever they were doing wasn't just normal (even as close friends), and he had prolonged it more than he could handle._ Yamato _was right. The gray areas – they were stupid, and he needed to wipe them out.

He had made up his mind to face it, with all the motivation to define this relationship with her. It was better now than never. That's how adults are supposed to do it. _Be a fucking man, Kido._

"I like you, Sora-chan," he held his breath afterwards. It felt like asthma.

And she felt the same in her chest when he said it. Surprise, worry, disbelief, but most of all – joy, fused in her chest.

"I like you too, senpai," she replied in all modesty. It was not how she imagined she'd say it. Firstly because, she expected she'd be the one to confess, and not the other way around.

"But.." _this feels.. so surreal.. _"Is this for real?"

He laughed out of nervousness, gave an apologetic smile as he hid his face with his palms. "It is, apparently."

They shared an awkward laugh, still trying to let the revelation sink in.

_This is real, this is real, this is real._

After a momentary silence, they look at each other for the first time, in a different way. Only now did Jyou realize that she was a true red – her hair and eyes were set ablaze, in contrast to his all-cool-blue.

Sora turned her head to the window, watched the snow glow in the darkness of the night. From here inside, it didn't seem scary at all. It was surprisingly beautiful and calming. The dark blue sky reminded her very much of his hair; the color of the snow, his favourite. Outside though, she lamented, probably a whole new set of chaos.

"Just look at all that white," he said with dislike. She glanced at him, apologetically.

"_Senpai_, it might not _last_ very long, you know.." He'd probably forget her after the winter, find a better prospective partner in the Science department. Maybe someone who isn't emotionally fragile as her. But right now, right here, when he said he likes her – that was all it mattered. She'd be replaying this moment in her head for the rest of the week.

The weather was even more terrible. There was no way he'd let her go out there. The thought of Sora staying in for the night made him frantic. If he does make Sora stay in, he'd never hear the end of it from his family – _'there's a girl in your room!'_, they'd repeat it over and over – especially Shuu and Shin. He looked at her, swallowed the lump on his throat.

"Well.." he placed a hand over hers, his eyes turning to where she was gazing off as well. _Okay, fine._ Her warm hand felt like home, and his worries fading as he watched through the window. "We don't know that for sure, do we?"

She used a free hand to take hold of her tea, before throwing him a smile. "So.." she started, her eyes becoming amused. "Do I still call you _senpai?"_

"W-what?!" caught off-guard, his glasses fell off, showing more of his brightly reddened face.

She heartily chuckled, her face red as well. They might just survive the winter.


	28. Old and New

**Author's Note: **As I was writing this, a writer-friend pointed out to me that this story's length word-count borders to being an epic (and this bothers me for this story is not about light vs. dark. It's a slice of life/coming-of-age/romance story). I just want to clarify that the whole purpose of Salad Days is to fill in the gap between Yamato and Mimi with imagined happenings and circumstances among them _and_ their friends. True, that this story is now invested to the other Chosen than what I have intended, but I feel it wouldn't be fair for the others to suffer in the character development department by shortening their 'appearance' here. If it all makes sense, while considering canon and my _own _headcanons, and with my resolve for Mimato to get together as more than just a fling or second love (but rather soulmates), I am compelled to make it as a one hell of a journey for them, for the readers, and especially for myself. (I never thought I'd be reaching to twenty-eight chapters!)

From now on the following chapters' lengths may range from 1800-5000 words. Take it as the Digimon Adventure teen drama you deserve.

* * *

**Salad Days  
**Chapter Twenty-eight  
_Old and New_

.

.

Yamato was going to welcome the New Year with _shinshu, mochi,_ and peppered steak, made by the one and only girl in his life (right now) – his dear _oka-san_. He always spends New Year's Eves with his mother and Takeru, for his father was always out for work. He faithfully followed this set-up during holidays – except for Christmas.

If there was anything this year had taught him: he should have spent more time with Natsuko. _Then maybe I would have had a better relationship with Sora. _

He poured a drink for himself as he watched reruns of _shonen_ anime, and resolved that anime back then was better than today. _Of course you think so, you nostalgic sap._ He flipped through channels, unable to pick something to watch as he was lost inside his mind. The thought of the year ending in a couple of hours was growing inside him. It was making him cynical.

He made an imaginary list in his head – a list of wins and losses, that is. He chose to count his losses first: Sora was the first thing that came into his mind, and it was probably the omen of the following things to come, such as the opportunity to take Music instead of Physics (in which he ought he had chosen poorly). Well, it was technically more of a disadvantage, _but still a loss, _he thought_._

Then the next was just very recent: him being kicked out of his band, the other biggest blow in the entire year. He still could not believe he was kicked out of his own band, _my own fucking band_. He was voted out for not being able to attend most band practices anymore - _they voted me out for entering college, that's what it is!_ – it was the last thing he had, and now it was gone. He was now just _Yamato the college student, _without a girlfriend, or a hip hobby going on for his social status (yes, he actually cares about it, _secretly_). Embittered, he emptied his glass in one drinking.

Now for the wins: he thought long. He thought hard. He thought long and hard enough for him to daze off of his moldy socks.

_Fuck._

He realized that he gained nothing but more losses and Christmas weight. With that realization, he drank again, with all his wishes he wouldn't get stuck in this rut for very long._ Please tell me I'm going to get out of this downward-spiral.._

"Why are you still dressed like that?" Takeru's voice came from behind. He sounded surprised.

"What do you mean I'm 'still' dressed like this?" spoke Yamato, who was in his favourite green sweater, pyjama slacks and socks. He sat up straight from the couch to look behind: Takeru in his winter get-up, along with a tacky and colorful bonnet. "Aren't you supposed to help mom cook for tomorrow? You know how meticulous oji-san is."

"Oka-san said we should drop by the temple," Takeru answered, adjusting his earmuffs.

"It's for good luck, Yama-chan," called Natsuko from the kitchen as he heard the clanging of dishes and pots.

Yamato leaned on the arm of the couch, unable to hide his dislike. His family was divided between Shintoism, Buddhism, and Catholicism (the last two, from his mother's side), and the variety had confused him enough to resolve his beliefs all on his own. Takeru was the opposite: he was a believer of everything.

"Wait a bit," he stood up from the couch, slipped on his fabric slippers as he went upstairs to get his coat. He might as well ask the higher beings and spirits for_ guidance_. There wasn't much to lose anyway, especially when he felt like he just lost everything.

_I'm being overly dramatic._

He grabbed some money, his scarf and gloves, before going down.

Takeru yawned, bored, sleepy, and hungry. He did nothing much during the winter break except for spamming his blog followers with photos of weird shapes of the clouds during the blizzard last week, and playing MMORPGs with Ken and Daisuke.

And Hikari was still not talking to him, just that very common _'Happy Christmas!'_ text message during the Eve.

"Aniki!" the younger blond called out. The sooner they go to the temple, the sooner they get back home. He then heard fast and heavy footsteps as his brother climbed down.

"You're not going out with that bonnet, are you?" asked Yamato, his brows meeting in disapproval.

"I'm using it, I just bought this!"

"Okay."

"Why? Don't you like it?"

"It doesn't match with your outfit."

"Tch. You're no tastemaker, aniki."

Yamato grunted and decided to let go of the issue. _Temple. Ring the bell. Then home. _"Let's just go."

They went to the kitchen first to kiss their mother goodbye, before leaving the house. The weather was still cold, but it was unlike the past few days when they had no choice but to stay home for days. This time, it was bearable. By the time they reached main street, the brothers hailed a cab, immediately got their ride with all the excitement to go home early.

Takeru's eyes wandered around. Like most of the time, he let his imagination run wild. "Aniki, should we go look for our illegitimate brother now?"

"What are you talking about," said Yamato who was mindless and uninterested as he scrolled through his phone. Sometimes he just could not understand Takeru.

"Ahh. Of course," Takeru snickered, coming off as a know-it-all as usual. "You always don't know what I'm talking about.." It was winter, and he was alone with his brother. He found that there's just something literary about it – going out in the snow. He didn't care if there were only two of them, and not three. _Now if only we were Russians…_

The ride on their way to the temple was quick. When they got off, they were greeted by a crowd blocking the entrance. They managed to get in by squirming through, like squeezing in a can of sardines. Yamato swore he almost broke a sweat.

"Well, that only took us ten minutes to reach here," said Takeru in sarcasm. They just got out of the crowd, and it felt like it took all of his energy. When he looked at bell, he was surprised to see how short the line was.

They took advantage of the length, lined up behind an old couple. Yamato watched the couple the entire time they waited, starting to envy them. _I guess there is forever for some people.. _he thought, the rest of his ponder going cynical again.

The old woman suddenly put her arm around her husband, and the man kissed her on the forehead. Yamato sighed and looked away.

"Aww.." the younger blond fawned over the couple in a whisper. "Hey aniki, wasn't that sweet?"

The eldest gave a sincere yet weakened smile. He was happy for the couple, genuinely. "Yeah, yeah, yeah.." Of course, it didn't stop him from feeling pathetic.

After five minutes, it was their turn to ring the bell. With all the right gestures, claps, and bows, Yamato and Takeru pulled the rope together, then reflected earnestly of their hopes and wishes.

_Please let me get through everything. I promise to be nicer to everyone,_ asked Yamato in silence. He released his hands, dropped them to his sides. He went to a corner to wait for Takeru, wanting to go home already and eat New Year's Eve food.

Takeru took it more to heart. His hands were in a firm prayer-form, eyes tight shut, trying to concentrate on his prayer. _Good health, good grades, good life, good everything.. umm.. maybe fix my relationship with Hikari-chan, too.. uhh.. nevermind – you're not supposed to be selfish, Takeru! – anyway, I only ask for this year to be a memorable and good one! Please and thank you. _

Takeru was also keen in to going home when he finished his prayer. They were about to, as they headed for the exit – until he saw a familiar haircut and color to his farthest right. She was accompanied by two other people, too. His instinct, of course, was unsurprising.

"Aniki," Takeru dragged Yamato at the dark, hid behind a nearby tree. The spot was open enough for them to see the entire place.

"What is it?" he whispered, trying to find out from whom his brother was hiding. Takeru pointed to three brown-haired people standing at the _amazake _(sweet rice wine) booth. The three of them were all wearing red.

It didn't take long for Yamato to recognize them. It was Taichi, Hikari, and Mimi, all of them drinking sweet wine. They broke into laughter, with Mimi and Hikari holding each other as Taichi continued to talk. And when it seemed he was done, Mimi leaned in to kiss him, with Hikari giggling at the side.

_Of course they're going to publicly display their affection. This is Mimi we're talking about.. _He thought as he rolled his eyes. What Taichi and Mimi have was nhone of the Japanese-conservative-private-relationship-like-he-had-with-Sora bullshit.

_Well, they look happy.._ he thought, but he wasn't so sure if he was entirely happy for them.

"Taichi-kun and Mimi-chan look so cute together," laughed Takeru, who also witnessed the scene.

"Yeah, they do," agreed Yamato. But he felt bad that he only half-meant it. _You're just bitter because you're single, Ishida. _

"It's like a club for_ brownies_," said Takeru, noticing how the three of them looked so alike, even in their coats. They were starting to behave alike, too – _all three of them. _It was unusually envious.

"Do you want to go there and say hi?" offered Yamato. Of course, he was just saying this. He didn't want to see Mimi and Taichi fondle on front of him and make him feel the loneliest person in the world. Being single was something he was still getting used to.

"No," replied Takeru. "Hikari doesn't want to see me. I'm sure of that."

"You're afraid of Hikari?"

"You know what happened.." he answered. "I screwed it."

"It's Hikari. And from what I remember, you're the one who dumped her."

"I know I did but that doesn't mean I don't like her back," he defended in a hiss, ignoring his brother indifference. "Besides, I really don't think she'd ever want me back even as friends,"

"How can you think like that when she had already confessed to you?!" asked Yamato in disbelief.

"Well, aniki, in case you don't notice, I'm still single,"

"That doesn't make sense. You're single by _choice_,"

"You know I have my reasons,"

"I'm starting to believe you're a masochist."

"Of course I am. My pain is my art."

"Oh, cry me a river."

"That's your style."

Yamato smirked. He had taught the little brat too well. Yamato went out of the shade, looked at his brother, who was still hiding behind a tree. _You look like a hippie Peeping Tom_, he chuckled at the image. "Come on, let's stop this. We can leave from the other side, you know."

Takeru went out of the shadows, removed his rainbow-colored bonnet. "I think it might attract her attention."

Yamato rolled his eyes as he readjusted his scarf. "You look better without it. Now let's go."

With one last look at the trio in red, Yamato and Takeru went south of the temple, with the heaviest of hearts.

* * *

"God, you are disgusting," said Mimi, playfully hitting Taichi by the arm. "Hikari, how can your brother be so repulsive and cute at the same time?"

"Don't ask me about that Mimi-chan," giggled Hikari. "I've heard and smelled onii-san's farts too many a time for me to think he's cute,"

"Oh sure, go rat me out to Mimi, will you," Taichi folded his arms with a mischievous look. "I still don't get why swallowing my gargles is such a gross thing. Ask Yamato, even he does it."

"_**Eew!"**_ the girls exclaimed in disgust. Mimi suddenly lost her appetite to finish her drink. Hikari, who had been laughing the entire time, wanted nothing more than to just take a sip of her wine – but couldn't, for she was too giggly.

"There's a difference between gargling mouthwash and gargling.." Mimi heaved; the word was at the tip of her tongue. She was hesitating to say it, for her imagination was running very fast. Nonetheless, she chose to finish her sentence to _reinforce_ her argument. "…_and_ gargling a drink!"

"My throat hurts," he answered simply, holding his paper cup as if he was about to give someone a toast. "It's really cold out here too, you know." He took a big drink of the wine, and held it for ten seconds before gulping it. The girls winced out of disgust, moved away from him for he was just too cruel.

Hikari and Mimi looked at each other, both defeated. "I'm sorry you have to see onii-san like this, Mimi-chan," she apologized. She couldn't help but worry that Mimi might get turned off, and eventually leave his brother because of his _strange_ habits. This particular one – he does it very often during the winter.

"You don't have to be sorry, HIkari!" reassured Mimi. She took a sip from her cup, and somewhat started to imagine what Taichi's gargled-residue tasted like. _Yuck, Mimi!_ "Though, I still am wondering how the two of you are related. Are you sure he isn't adopted or anything?" she said with a chuckle.

"Onii-san has a lot of weird habits, and they change every season," giggled Hikari. She thought of revealing those habits now to Mimi, keen to know her reactions and resolve.

"Like what?"

"During the summer, he takes five baths a day; in autumn he only eats spicy food, most of the time it's ramen," said Hikari, blushing. Mimi's curious face hasn't moved an inch. _Okay, then here's the big one._ "and then during the spring, he only washes his hair once a week.. with lemon juice and coconut milk."

Mimi's eyes narrowed, her lips pursed. Taichi's lifestyle made her very curious about her own. _It must be a remedy for something…_ "Why does he put lemon juice and coconut milk on his hair? During spring?"

"I don't know," she replied with an apologetic smile. She took a sip from her cup, noticed that her wine had gone cold already. "Oka-san thinks it's weird, too."

Mimi smirked at Taichi's direction; he was getting another cup of amazake. Her eyes went back to the younger girl she's with, unable to resist in to thinking how great of a sister she is. Being an only child, she always wished to have a baby sister to play with and to talk to. Mimi had imagined many times what it could have been like if she were sisters with Sora and Hikari. Sora would have been the most responsible sister. She herself would be the perfect middle child. Hikari would be their most protected imouto. _ Stupid Takeru. How can he reject this precious?!_ "Hikari-chan,"

"Yes, Mimi-chan?"

Not even Mimi could resist Hikari's naivety and delicateness. _Taichi must be having a hard time protecting her. _"I know it's none of my business but I'm worried, and I guess I just want to feel relaxed about it," said Mimi, biting her lip. "Are you okay?"

"Ahh.. of course Mimi-chan!" she said with a smile. "Why? What made you ask?"

Mimi stared down to her cup, carefully picking her words. "Ahh.. I heard from Miya-chan, you see.. that you broke down at school.."

The younger brunette immediately blushed out of embarrassment. Her gaze fell down to her cup. "Did you tell onii-san?"

Mimi shook her head. "I hope you don't get angry at Miyako-chan," said Mimi further. "I think she's worried and wanted to help.. but doesn't know how to.. and so she asked me.."

"Ahh.. it's alright," said Hikari, sipping from her chilled wine. She was still avoiding Mimi's gaze.

"Ahh.. at that time, everything just took a toll on me.. you know.. everything." It was then she realized how tough things were for her this year. There were a lot that had happened, but now, at least _right now,_ she was glad to say she's been dealing with it pretty well. She suddenly felt Mimi's hand hold hers. Hikari looked up to be greeted with Mimi's smile. It felt nice to be looked out for.

_No wonder onii-san likes you, _thought Hikari as she smiled back.

"But I'm okay now," added Hikari, her face lightening up as she looked to the sky. "My new year's resolution is to be more open with my feelings, and to treat myself better. _Hehe." _she continued on with a blush. "When I say it like that, it sounds like I'm trying to be like you, Mimi-chan,"

The other girl could not help but grin. "Should I take that as compliment?"

"No it was actually meant to insult you," she replied, and they both broke into giggles. "Ahh.. I just hope we get through this year,"

"Yeah.." replied Mimi. And she knew that the struggle for the Yagami siblings was far from over. Susumu-ji-san was still in the hospital, and had fallen in to comatose; and considering all that she had learned from Taichi's and Hikari's lives, she couldn't help but admire how strong they both were. If she was in Hikari's place, she'd probably do something more than just a breakdown. With that in mind, she came to remember her relapses with her vices; and the night Yamato jumped down the bridge.

She looked at Hikari, who was all quiet and pensive, amber eyes looking into nothingness. Mimi sighed in relief. _At least it never crossed her mind._

_All the negative things,_ she thought, _I should conquer them before they conquer me.. but how? _

"How do you become stronger..?" she didn't notice she was thinking out loud, and Hikari heard her.

"What?"

"Oh..!" not wanting to show any weakness, Mimi just smiled. "It's nothing,"

Hikari pried no more when she saw her smile. It wasn't a smile of reassurance, rather a smile akin to a mask. Since her brother and Mimi started dating, she had been spending a lot of time with them during her free days. And there was one thing Hikari kept noticing about her, thanks to her observations and _scarily_ accurate gut feeling –

Mimi Tachikawa was suffering. Hikari could not pinpoint why, whether if she had caught her many a time spacing out, or if it was because Mimi kept so mum whenever Koushiro's name was heard, or whenever she caught her sneaking a cigarette outside school, but she felt strongly of Mimi's energy often dwindling between the darkness and light.

Suffering. _She is, and no one knows it_ – perhaps not even Mimi herself.

Hikari emptied her cup in hesitance, trying to absorb this revelation she had uncovered. _Maybe we're not so different.._

"We should do more fun things this year," chirped Mimi as she snapped out of her thoughts. "As for me, I promise to be stronger now!" _Heart and mind, Mimi!_

Taichi had finally joined their conversation. He had already finished his drink. "Stronger?"

"Physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.._ everything!_"

He chuckled impishly. "Okay, you do that."

Mimi and Hikari looked at each other shrewdly. "Heh. I learned you wash your hair with lemon juice and coconut milk," informed Mimi in a taunting voice. "Why?"

"Because it makes my hair nice," he answered abruptly while lightly touching his hair. He turned to his sister, who looked docile as ever. He would not be fooled and gave her a lopsided grin. "And thank you, Hikari, for ratting me out to Mimi _again._ I swear I won't bring you with us anymore,"

"Aww, but third-wheeling with you guys is fun," teased Hikari. "You become more generous when Mimi-chan's around,"

"You're leeching off of me," he said as he rolled his eyes. He turned to Mimi, who was having too much of a good time. "Anyway, _why?_ What's wrong with washing my hair with natural stuff?!"

"Are you trying to grow flowers in your hair?" joked the eldest brunette.

"If you know, _Tachikawa-san_, lemon juice and coconut milk makes the hair grow finer and longer. Just feel how soft it is," he said proudly as he brushed a hand through his mane.

"It does?" Mimi leaned in to feel his hair. Though she and Taichi have been really intimate, she didn't notice how smooth and fluffy his bushy hair actually is, until now. It was softer than what she had imagined._ I'm definitely going to try that._ "Oh my God. All this time I thought your hair was a bird's nest,"

Hikari watched the couple in contentment. The last time she saw her brother at his happiest was when his team won the district football league – which was three years ago. She took out her camera in stealth, took candid photos of the couple. They seemed really happy, and that made her happy, too. _You deserve it, onii-san._

"Anyway, we should get back to the hospital," said Taichi as he looked at his wristwatch. It was two hours before the New Year. "Let's take Mimi home first."

They headed for the northern entrance. Hikari could not understand why it was so crowded at the entrance, then so spacious inside. _Is everyone waiting for something? For someone? A parade?_ She thought, while bumping shoulders with a passerby. It was a rather strong bump, and she almost lost her balance.

"Hikari-chan?" It was Koushiro, in his plaid winter coat and white earmuffs. He held a videocam with him, and he was alone.

_He's going to videoshoot the New Year?_ guessed Hikari. The camera looked exquisite.

"Ohh, Koushiro-san! Happy New Year!" The girl smiled, picking up the empty paper cup that fell from her hand. Taichi and Mimi then showed up from behind, both surprised to see him.

"Koushiro!" the couple exclaimed. Koushiro blushed, didn't expect his presence to be welcomed warmly. Especially not by Taichi and Mimi.

"Kou-kun, Happy New Year!" The older brunette didn't hesitate to give the redhead a brief hug. Taichi placed a hand on his shoulder, said his greetings as well. Taichi wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was actually glad to see Koushiro again. He missed him, and he wanted to ask so many things, and tell him more things. But for the whole time, he only held his tongue , unable to break the wall between them.

"Ahh.. Thank you Mimi-chan, Taichi-kun," Koushiro felt awkward, embarrassed, knowing that it wasn't even the first of January yet and they were already greeting him. They were all smiles, trying their best to make everything normal. All the more he was compelled to get out of their way, so they wouldn't worry about him. _I'm not ready for this yet._

"I'm going to go now, I'm making a short video for my mother," he said, faking a smile. He was starting to become a good actor: Unfortunately, all three of them were better at it, and saw right through him.

Hikari, being the more observant one, looked at the three, noticed how her brother and Mimi were disappointed to find out that he needed to go. "Ohh.. Okay.." she managed to say. "I hope you hang out with us next time, Koushiro-san,"

The redhead gave a small nod. They greeted him a _"Happy New Year"_ again, before parting their ways. He disappeared, just like a ghost of the winter, a memory that seemed so long ago; and Taichi feared he might just become one to _him_.

"Ahh.. I'm sure everything will be okay again, onii-san." His little sister tried her best to comfort the couple, changing the topic and all. But for most of the time, Taichi remained mum, under the calm demeanor

"He'll be okay.." said Mimi. Of course it was a lie. But Mimi knew there really was no point anymore to force Koushiro. _There's nothing else we can do.._ "We tried our best." She assured, slipping her hand in his.

"Yeah.." Taichi wasn't sure, and he wanted to go back to talk to their redheaded friend, who's probably all alone again to film the fireworks and whatnot. But he kept walking forward, tightened his hand on hers, with all the hope that his dad, his relationship with Koushiro, college, his part-time, this relationship with Mimi – _everything –_ would turn all right for the coming year.

* * *

Yamato and Takeru were already at the back of the temple, passing by people who held on their charms and fortunes. Takeru did not want the opportunity to pass by.

"We should get our fortunes first, aniki," the younger blond said. Yamato scrunched his brows in disagreement, but said nothing else as he followed his little brother. _Why must Takeru be so.. gullible?_

Next to the charms shop was a huge wooden board, covered in thousands of paper strips; like flowers, he and Takeru plucked two paper strips which held their fortune.

Yamato, of course, was very cynical. He unfolded his fortune and it read in sumi-ink: _good-luck: Love will bloom even before the spring._ He raised a brow, amused that he didn't get a curse this time. He glanced at Takeru, who became eerily quiet.

_Bad-luck: You must act now before it's too late,_ it read. _Act on what?_ thought Takeru. He grunted, stuffed the piece of paper in his pocket.

"What did yours say?" asked Yamato, who was still holding his fortune. He seemed very proud of it.

"Ehh.." Takeru scowled. "it was an advice." _A bad one,_ he thought bitterly.

"Are you going to follow it?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Bad advice."

"Hmm.."

"You had a good one, didn't you?"

"Hehe."

"The world is unfair."

Yamato had already thought of a rebuttal, but he didn't get to say it, when he spotted a girl in red and a boy in blue. He took Takeru's hand, dragged him to the farthest corner of the place.

Being dragged, Takeru turned his head to look back, saw Sora and Jyou together, buying good luck charms. The next thing he noticed – they were holding hands. Takeru turned to his brother, who was just as shocked as he is. They did not talk until they found another hiding spot.

"Woah," Takeru bent, his knees supporting his upper limbs. They were now at the southern entrance of the temple, where there were barely any people. He watched his brother pace back and forth, pondering from what he had just seen.

"Aniki, did you know about it?"

"I might have foreseen it," answered Yamato.

This was the first time Yamato had seen Sora since Mimi's birthday last summer. And though he had only seen her for a good five seconds tonight, he noticed that she had gained some weight. Her face was fuller, livelier, happier – her skin was glowing. And by her side, Jyou, looked calmer, more serene-looking than the last time he saw him. The change was drastic.

His little brother looked warily at him, trying to read his emotions. But Yamato remained silent and still, not a glint of tears or mirth in his eyes. Takeru sat on the footsteps of the stony stairs, with a hand under his chin, he got lost in his ponder.

"They're actually a nice match, if you think about it," Yamato spoke at last. He was rather surprised by the absence of his own disbelief. He always assumed Sora would go to Taichi – the best friend, the childhood friend, her almost lover: but thinking about it now, she and Jyou, they were also an even match.

"Yeah." Takeru wasn't really _that _staggered. Even now, he still looked up to them as the _otou-san _and _oka-san _of the group. Though, he really did think Sora would go to Taichi. _And that Taichi would go to her, and not Mimi,_ he thought.

"Hehe. The couples in our group are unexpected matches, _no?_"

"A bit," the older blond answered truthfully.

"So how do you feel about it?"

"About what?"

"Seeing them?"

"I'm okay, I guess."

"Ehh.. If you say so, aniki. Don't you come crying to me later."

"That'd be you.. You wuss."

"There was nothing wrong with what I did,"

"You're avoiding her."

"I am because she's avoiding me and doesn't want me."

"I really hate it when you talk like that,"

"Then don't bring it up."

The two brothers fell silent, noticing that their playful and supposedly lighthearted banter was turning into something more serious. Takeru dug through his pocket and took out his fortune, and re-read it again: _You must act now before it's too late… You must act now before it's too late… You must act now before it's too late… _

There was only one thing in his mind that his fortune can be applied to. But he was too resolved to even have second thoughts. "You know, if I had chosen to went out with her, we would fail as a couple,"

Yamato sat beside him. "What makes you think like that, really?"

"I mean, you know.. we're both not.. _you know._." rambled Takeru. He was so frustrated that he started wearing his rainbow-colored bonnet again. "I'd completely lose her if it doesn't work out."

Yamato sighed, stared at his brother with all his might to be more patient with him. "Aren't you already losing her by not facing her?"

"We haven't started anything, and we've been friends for years," he said. "I know Hikari. She wouldn't let our friendship crumble over this."

"Now you're just taking her for granted."

"I'm looking out for her," corrected Takeru. "I don't trust myself on relationships yet. Not completely."

Yamato heaved in defeat. Though, he wasn't feeling too frustrated about it anymore. "Believe what you want..." he said. He finally admitted that he would never win over his little brother's 'logic'.

Takeru sighed. He knew what his brother meant. And in fact, he does make sense. _It's just.. _"You know what aniki?"

"What?"

"Sometimes I blame mom and dad that I turned out like this."

Yamato laughed, a little bit too loud that it surprised Takeru. The younger blond rolled his eyes, slightly annoyed.

"See, now that's the thing you need let go of," said Yamato, who was still chuckling. "Make it your New Year's resolution, Takeru,"

"Don't tell me that the divorce didn't affect your love-life or relationship-handling in any way," taunted Takeru.

"Of course it did. Greatly," admitted Yamato. He thought there was no shame in it. "If you're going to notice anything similar between us, you and I are always worried. Anxious."

"I don't have anxiety issues. I'm actually living a perfectly normal life," argued Takeru. "I'm just being extra careful with Hikari, that's all."

"Being obsessively careful, you mean." Replied Yamato. He would not say it to Takeru, but Yamato could already tell from his eyes how sad he really is.

Takeru scrunched his brows in confusion. He just couldn't see it. "Like Jyou-senpai-kind-of-anxiety?"

"No, ours is actually more terrible. Especially when it comes to relationships." answered Yamato. This was something Yamato had been speculating for months now, when he started to think of the possibility of Sora and Jyou: the difference between Jyou's relationship-anxiety and _his_ is that Jyou's would immediately fade away, right after reason was put to it. His was the sort that would stay for a very long time. His was _more_ stubborn, more secretive._ It's probably what made Sora break up with me._

"I don't get it," Takeru said, now coddling himself in his coat. "All I know is, the divorce messed up my understanding of how relationships work. And I'm going to stick with what I know because there's just no point in forcing myself."

The eldest rolled his eyes, now disinterested. He watched some fireworks shooting afar. He looked at his watch, realizing there was still time to muse over their _issues_; for when the new year comes, he must get his shit together.

There'd be no room for dilly-dallying. No more jumping off of bridges, nor being bitter about the band, nor questioning the certainty of his future. No more heartbreak.

"I wonder what would mom and dad say about this.." Takeru thought out loud.

Yamato playfully bonked him on the head. "Don't tell them that. They're going to blame themselves forever."


	29. Magnets

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**Salad Days**  
Chapter Twenty-nine  
_Magnets_

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_March.  
Springtime._

_._

_._

It was a boy. A boy was standing on front of Keisuke Tachikawa's doorstep, and he brought cake and his guitar with him. He had yellow hair and blue eyes, and he was looking for his daughter.

"Michael?" his eyes narrowed as he examined the blond from top to bottom. His spectacles weren't doing a great job at refining his vision. _"You look thinner.."_

"N-no.." Yamato stuttered, swallowing the lump in his throat. He was trying his best to not feel irritated. "I told you already, it's Yamato. _**Ishida Yamato,**_ Tachikawa-san." He was desperately hoping Mimi would show and up save him from this awkward confrontation with her father. It didn't help that Keisuke kept insisting he was Mimi's American friend.

_The Lord is testing me._

Keisuke's _Protective Dad_ game was on. He crossed his arms, doubting the credibility of this blond kid on front of him. He did not know anyone named _'Yamato' _was a friend of Mimi's. He called in Satoe for help – if Mimi actually ever had a friend named _'Yamato'_.

Yamato bit his lip. It annoyed him that Mimi's father didn't remember him – but he couldn't blame him for it. His wife appeared, peeping from Keisuke's shoulders. Yamato noticed her, and thought that she still looked the same eight years ago, as if she didn't age at all. He took a good look at Satoe again – _nope_, not a wrinkle on her face.

Her mouth gaped upon seeing the blond. _"Yamato-kun!"_

_Great, someone from the Tachikawas remembers me,_ he thought sarcastically. While still savoring his relief, Satoe had grabbed him by the arm, dragging him inside. Keisuke looked disapprovingly at his wife, but did not protest any further.

"Take a seat, Yamato-kun," welcomed Satoe. "Do you want orange juice? Tea?"

But Yamato can sense Mimi's father's eyes burning holes on his forehead. It made him really uncomfortable. "I-it's fine, Tachikawa-san,"

"Oh yeah, I brought cake." Yamato handed the cake over to Satoe, who was more than delighted to receive it. He didn't really know why he brought one, especially when he's not even formally meeting Mimi's parents as _something_. He just felt like it was the right thing to do. Now realizing this gesture, he went red. _Maybe I overdid it a bit._

"Ishida-san," Mimi's father started. The kid had a guitar. He's blond and he claims not to be _'Michael'_, and insists to be _'Yamato'_. Keisuke remembers not a Yamato, but a Yoshio. And if ever this kid turned out to be Yoshio – tracking Mimi down even here in Japan – he would immediately call his 'special' friends. He did very well in handling the asshole back then, after all.

His paranoia overtook him. "Are you my daughter's American boyfriend?"

"N-no!" he abruptly answered, wiping his forehead out of fear. He would have slipped in that he's French by a quarter but he was too nervous. "Actually, Mimi's boyfriend is a friend of mine."

Satoe was in her thinking pose. Her daughter has a lot of friends, in Japan or in America. Since there were a lot, she could not remember all of them, except for the special seven children that her daughter always mentioned about. And frankly, she preferred them over Mimi's other friends. And yes, unlike her husband, she definitely remembered a 'Yamato' among the seven. But Yamato was definitely not Mimi's boyfriend, thought Satoe, for she always found him too distant around their daughter. "Is it Taichi-kun?"

"Y-yes.."

"Well, tell Mimi to bring him over. I always liked Taichi-kun, he's very…" replied Satoe as she sashayed her way back to the kitchen. Keisuke followed her from behind, his voice agitated as he talked to his wife about their daughter's love life.

Yamato instantly blocked the compliments that he was hearing about Taichi and focused on the thought of Mimi. He stood stiffly, cursing her over and over under his breath. _Where the hell are you, Tachikawa?_ Leaving him with her parents alone – it certainly was a very torturous thing for her to do. He was fuming in red. _How could you, how could you, how could you?!_

And as if by magic, a door near the kitchen swung open.

"Yamato-kun!" she stood there in her pink fluffy bathrobe, her hair damped, and her skin was moist and dewy. He instantly turned his head to another side, out of irritation and uneasiness.

"You're late." He spat.

Mimi frowned, turned her head away as she dried her hair. "Well it's nice seeing you too," she smiled dryly. "How can I be late in my own home? It's not like we're going anywhere,"

"Just get dressed."

"Let's go upstairs then," she said, already at the foot of the stairs.

He shot her a deadly look, staring at her from top to bottom, in utter disbelief how this girl could be so carefree and liberated. _Is she even aware of the situation? _His mind was panicking, but he still managed to fake some coolness – _"If you get dressed."_

"Gosh Yamato, you've seen me countless of times in my swimsuit and I bet your phone has photos of me in it," she teased, unable to resist the temptation of making him uncomfortable. Plus, the expressions he made when he is are always priceless. She grinned. "So what difference does it make if I'm in my underwear?"

He blushed madly, and he was angry, his mouth was gaping, like a carp out of the water. Mimi knew she won. "What the hell is wrong with you?" he spat, his nostrils flaring.

She burst into laughter. She loved that expression. It was rare for it to come by. "Oh come on, you know I was just joking,"

She had caught him again. He rolled his eyes, tried to gain some control back. "Your sense of humor is terrible," he said calmly, trying to ride with her. His cheeks were still warm. "I'm going to tell Taichi what you just did to me."

Mimi leaned on the handle of the stairs, pouted. "Buzzkill, Ishida. I was going to make you wait outside my room.." she pouted. "Dummy."

She turned back around, started climbing up. Yamato watched her for a while, trying to shake off the thoughts and feelings he shouldn't be having, before following her to her room.

The door came wide open, much to Yamato's surprise. The pinkness of the room, as far as he could remember, was blinding.

"You can come in now," she said, grinning from the door. Yamato grimaced and stepped into her room. It was the first time, ever. He looked around, getting less and less excited by the things he was seeing. It was exactly what he had expected. The biggest surprise was her bookshelf, in which Yamato never expected her to be obsessed over self-help titles. _So Mimi actually reads…_

The girl, now in her loose dungarees with a bandeau underneath, rushed to her bed and sat down on it as she motioned him to sit with her. He gulped, gave her a stern glare, hoping that she would understand what his eyes were trying to say. Mimi doesn't anyway as she just shouted back at him to stop hesitating and _just sit_ with her. He eventually did, but it didn't stop him from visualizing scenarios that involved her pink and white bed sheet. Yamato swore he would never forget this day, when he crossed personal boundaries of a _pretty young girl_ who wasn't his girlfriend.

_And it just had to be Mimi, of all people_..

"Do you want to eat something, Yamato-kun?" she asked, crawling nearer to him as he was sitting at the very edge of her bed.

"N-no," he retorted, as he could feel her breath on his neck. He wiped some small beads trickling down his forehead, before facing her. He just blushed madly again. "Maybe later."

"Okay."

"Okay, so where's your guitar?" he asked, looking for a nice, acoustic guitar that may be lying around. Mimi bent down and grabbed a ukulele under her bed, held it to him proudly.

"That's not a guitar, Mimi."

"I know it isn't, dummy. But it's basically the same thing."

"It's not the same thing," he argued. "You said you wanted me to teach you to play guitar, so I brought my own guitar,"

"But I want to play _this_," she insisted as she pressed the instrument to him. "Taichi-kun gave it to me for Christmas." For a second he was paralyzed upon hearing Taichi's name. It had been almost a year now, and even though he supported Taichi and Mimi, he was yet to feel genuinely about them, for reasons he himself does not know. "So Taichi gave it to you, huh,"

"Yeah," she said, grinning and blushing like a school girl. "He said he would have bought me a guitar, but it was too expensive."

"It is," said Yamato. Picking the ukulele from her, he examined it the furnishing and checked the brand. With all of this in mind, Yamato wondered if Taichi really picked this out for Mimi or if he just took one randomly. The debate in his head went on for a while, until settling for the thought that maybe it was actually Hikari who picked the gift. He handed it back to her.

"Okay Mimi, let's start. It's pretty easy, actually."

She followed him by example. Yamato would demonstrate first, and he'd give her back her ukulele for her to try the notes. Surprisingly she was a fast learner, having already played the chords of the ukulele in an hour. With this new achievement, she insisted she should try out on his guitar.

It was at that momentary silence which made him realize his situation.

Teaching Tachikawa Mimi in her bedroom made him feel things that border between discomfort and longing. He could instantly feel the electricity run through his entire body as he touches her fingers, her hands, guiding them to the right chords and strokes.

"My hand is too small, it won't reach," she complained, as she tried to play the F major. Unwantedly, he took her by the arm and adjusted her in a more comfortable position. His hands brushed down from her arms to her hands, then to her fingers. With a brief whiff of her hair, his mind had gone blank.

Warmth rushed to Mimi's cheeks, could feel his light breath on her nape, the sensation of his touch felt like the wind tickling her. She became more conscious, as she suddenly felt the heat on her back that was against his arm and shoulder.

His hand remained on top of hers, stiffened. It was there when Mimi remembered that Yamato was a boy. A _man_. "Yamato-kun?"

"S-sorry," he apologized, snapping back to reality. "I just remembered something. Anyway.." Yamato tried to regain focus, but words had failed him.

Mimi wondered over the peculiar connection earlier. It was as if their nerves were being magnetized. _What was that all about…_

"Let's take a break," she insisted, stretching out her worn out arms as she placed his guitar by her bedside and lied down. Without even thinking, he followed lied down beside her. Stealing a glance, the distance between their faces overwhelmed her a bit, enough for blood to rush through her cheeks.

"Hey Mimi,"

She turned her head to face him, studied the profile of his face. "What?"

"I have a wild idea,"

She realized he has a really nice nose, too. "What is it?"

"You and me. Band."

She blinked a couple of times, then prodded nearer to him with excitement and disbelief, tugging the sleeve of his white shirt. "You meant you and me? Just you and me? A band, Yamato-kun?"

"Yes. You and me. A band," he echoed out of sarcasm. "I'm just repeating what I said now."

But Mimi couldn't seem to grasp on the idea fully. Without thinking she retreated from her position, slightly lying on the very tip of his shoulder. "Me.."

The feeling of her very scented head and hair on his shoulder was eerily comfortable. Her hair was everywhere. He lifted his left hand, then lightly brushed locks of her hair to look finer.. 'You."

"Me?"

"_Mimi..." _And he ended up brushing her hair, as if hypnotized.

She giggled and looked straight back at him, catching him off-guard. "You're kidding me,"

"I shit you not."

"But what are we going to do? Are we going to be like the hipster duos Takeru listens to?" she said, laughing. She inched closer to him, liking the light pats on her head..

"Well, I thought of you being the main vocalist while I'm the one who plays the instrument."

"So we're an acoustic duo."

"Something like that."

"What do we call ourselves?"

"I don't know. I don't really care right now," he replied nonchalantly while still stroking her hair. "I just want to know if you're in this. So… yes or no?"

"What about Mimi and the Wolf?"

_I guess that answers my question._ "That's really sexist of you."

"Mimi and Blondie."

"…"

"Mimi and the Lonely Hearts Club."

"When you say Lonely Hearts Club, you're only actually referring to me."

"It sounds nice.. You are lonely, after all."

"Foul."

"What about Mimi and the Moon?"

"Why does it always have to have your name on it?"

"Because my name makes it special and fun,"

"And _Yamato_ doesn't?"

"Yamato is such a serious name. A name for buzzkills. Mimi _and Yamato? _Come on. The latter kills it."

"What does that even mean?!" he exclaimed, his hand also stopping from stroking her hair.

"That the name Yamato is too serious of a name, _Yamato-kun!_" she answered, looking back up at him. Only then did she realize how intimate they actually were, but the first thing that came into her mind wasn't about how wrong it was – rather how weird it was that it felt natural. It felt effortless. It felt right. And Yamato looked extra handsome from her angle.

He was paralyzed as well, unable to tear his eyes from hers. He was looking down at Mimi, completely coddled beneath him. Her hair – her hair was everywhere again - all flared at him. Completely blanked, he lifted his finger and traced her face, from the bone of her brows, to her cheeks, down to her chin. His fingers ached to brush them against her lips, but only until she pulled him by the collar to press hers against his.

It was as if tongues knew how to yearn for each other, and unite with passion. _Fucking hormones._

But neither thought about it, and he kissed her back, completely forgetting that she belonged to someone else until she mentions her boyfriend's name; said something about how she never felt _this way_ with him. But even so, it didn't stop him from taking the opportunity to end his craving. It never did.

She pulled away, her face looking completely lost and confused. Confused, but guiltless. "Ahh. I'm sorry, Yamato-kun."

Without a word or apology, Yamato went out of the room, out of her house, with his guitar on his back. His heart was aching. Though it wasn't because she is confused; it's because he_ is_. He thought that maybe kissing Mimi would finally shake off the permeating sexual tension between them, actually thinking that doing it once would end the rush of his nerves –but he's now more than ever convinced that it's no longer just his teenage hormones taking over. What made him feel worse was that it felt good and right.

Guilty and confused, he pulled out his phone and called someone to talk to. "Takeru. Where are you right now?"


	30. Non licet

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* * *

**Salad Days**  
Chapter Thirty  
_Non licet_

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The rhythm of the drums followed his heartbeat. Eyes fixated on the tangled wires and cords, he could only replay the scene from earlier: Hikari with someone else, someone who wasn't him, or Daisuke. It was the first time he wished she was with Daisuke instead.

_And on a fucking weekend,_ he thought bitterly. Since when has she expanded her social circle to other boys? He knew her too well to be playing around, but maybe she's changed. Maybe she's been spending more time with Mimi nowadays that could have given her such confidence. _It could be, it could be._ And it's been months since they've hung out.

After all, he himself had expanded his own social circle, thought that if he was to become a serious writer, he'd need to surround himself with experienced artisans. Hence he joined the groupie of a crack-loving-musician-also-beatnik-poet, not to mention Mimi's jailbird ex-boyfriend, Yoshio.

Now, firstly, he only did so because Hikari was the only one who matched his level of passion for the arts; and since her breakdown she was avoiding him like the Black Death. Neither Ken nor Miyako really care about his hobbies enough to give input – thus on a fateful February evening at Palette Town, he bumped on to Yoshioka Aoiyami, who was hoarding arcade tickets that night.

It was possibly the most anticlimactic Valentines he ever had, just like his love life. But of course, that aspect of his life didn't matter until today.

"Takeru, are you all right there?" called out Yoshio, who had recently changed his band's name from Cake the Cat to Lord of the Fries. His hair was now purple.

"I'm fine, Yoshio-san," replied Takeru with a smile. The band continued to play, and so did Takeru's inner mind theatre.

Then there was yesterday, too - a Friday:

"_You didn't say anything about going to Kyoto, Koushiro-san," the brunette said in-between her munches. It was lunchtime, and for the first time in a very long time, everyone shared the same table._

_Takeru couldn't help but notice how close Hikari and Koushiro were now. Did he just miss something? Or has it always been that way? He didn't say anything, and continued to listen._

"_Todai doesn't have any computer-related degrees," replied the redhead._

_Mimi, who sat beside Hikari, looked down to her soup, unusually quite. Her eyes remained stuck there for the rest of lunch time._

_"That's a shame," piped in Miyako, who sat across Koushiro. "It's so far away from here," _

_"I think it's great, Koushiro-san," replied Ken, who barely touched his food. "I might go there when I graduate from high school." _

_"How did your parents feel about it?" asked Daisuke, who was beside the blond. "I mean.. You'll have to be away from them."_

_"They felt sad of course," replied Koushiro as he cheerfully dipped his noodles with his miso. "But they support me."_

_"That's so great," admired Hikari. "I hope my family gives me the same support if I pursue Photography."_

_Unable to keep quiet and mum, Takeru spoke at last. "I think they will. You don't have to worry about that," he assured, expecting her to acknowledge him. He tried many a time, but kept failing._

_Of course she still didn't, though. Didn't even spare him a look, and turned to the older brunette instead. "How about you, Mimi-chan?"_

_"Hmm.." Mimi playfully stuck her tongue out. "I don't know yet."_

_Everyone except for the two brunettes gave him either an empathetic or disapproving look. The group was halved: some thought Hikari's just too harsh, while others just wished Takeru would apologize (which he never did, by the way). Daisuke could not help but grunt out of disappointment and whispered to him, "I thought you were better than that, Takeru."_

His train of thought halted as the entrance swung open, revealing his very agitated brother, Yamato.

"What on earth are you doing here?" asked Yamato out loud, his rapid and heavy footsteps overpowering the band's rehearsal.

"Hey Ishida!" greeted the vocalist upstage. But Yamato was too furious to even look at him. Yamato stood on front of his little brother's table, sternly looking at him.

"You can sit down, you know," said Takeru, trying to lighten up his mood while offering him his glass of soda.

Yamato could not understand why Takeru was here at the first place, but he was now regretting for letting him join his former band's groupie. After all, a fifteen-year-old shouldn't be in a bar, listening to the cuss and fuss of other men, but at home playing video games instead.

But there was no time for lectures. There were other things that mattered – such as that treacherous moment with Tachikawa Mimi not too long ago. The older blond sat beside his brother, poured himself some soda. He looked up at the stage to see who was playing:

"You're hanging out with him?!" exclaimed Yamato out of disbelief and anger, eyes, nostrils, and mouth in full circles.

Takeru squinted his eyes, crossed his arms and legs coolly. He was beginning to notice his brother's new fondness with throwing tantrums. "Uhh.. _duh?_"

"Are you actually telling me you now belong to his entourage?"

"Yes. Come on, aniki. Your band broke up. I need a new groupie."

_Kicked me out, to be more specific,_ he bitterly remembered. "Nice try. You're not allowed to go here again."

"Oh come on now, that's not fair," argued the younger brother. "Besides, you know me. I neither drink nor smoke. I don't like having vices."

"That's beside the point," said Yamato abruptly, pulling Takeru by the sleeve. "What's happening to you, really?"

"No one at school is an artist."

"Too cool for school, you mean."

"Maaaaaybe.."

"I still don't like it." he snapped. Yamato was running out of patience. He knew Takeru was set off for an eccentric, artistic lifestyle, but this was just too intolerable. "If this is you trying to be Kerouac or Murakami, you can do this when you're twenty-one,"

"I can't believe you're undermining me," retorted Takeru out loud. His brash movement as he jerked away from his brother made a noise of the table; it was loud enough to catch the attention of the band.

"You're not going to hang out with him." snapped Yamato as he motioned his head to the purple-haired vocalist, much to his distaste.

Yoshio climbed down from the platform, heading towards their direction. Yamato dreaded every second he came nearer to them. This was the least of things he wanted to face right now: anyone related to the love life of Mimi.

"Fucking great," he muttered under his sparse breath, loud enough for Takeru to hear. Yoshio was smiling, waving at them. Unlike Takeru, who was in friendly terms with the man, Yamato turned his head away, grunting every curse he knew. He had always seen Yoshio Aoiyami, knowing enough about him and his past involvement with a certain brunette. Yoshio was unbelievably amiable and actually charming – boys and girls alike – and Yamato envied his musical style, too; with those in mind, Yamato treated him with neutrality, never showed or expressed anything that he knew more about this character.

"What brings you here Ishida? It's still too early," Yoshio took a stool, sat across them. His purple hair was as bright as his smile. "Got a new band now?"

Yamato briefly shrugged. _There goes Mimi and the Moon_, he bitterly thought. The best thing to do right now was for him to shut up.. if he could help it.

Takeru rolled his eyes, unable to understand his brother's antics and a bit relieved that Yoshio was there to cut them off in the middle of a lecture. _Why did he even call me in the first place?_ he asked himself, since Yamato sounded very urgent on the phone. He hoped there was more than just reprimanding him.

"How's everything, Yoshio-san?"

"Well, see those girls over there?" Yoshio pointed out to the other corner of the place, specifically a table of girls. Yamato's eyes shot directly towards them upon the mentioning of girls. "they want a mixer with us,"

"Ohh," Takeru noticed that some of the girls were actually from Hikari's class. He didn't know their names, but the faces were very familiar. Apparently, it wasn't just him who was thinking about _it._

"You do realize they're all under-aged, right?" spat Yamato from his stillness.

"How did you even know that?" Yoshio crossed his arms out of disagreement, and looked at the girls again. "And why would it matter? They're the ones who asked us,"

"And you're just going to go with them, without any regard of their status and yours?" retorted Yamato. Takeru could already feel his brother's temper by the way his fists clenched.

"It's just a mixer, Ishida," defended the adult as he held his hands up. "Take a chill pill, would you?"

_Chill pills,_ he hated how this guy could still manage to joke around. He hated how he's preying on high school students here. Yamato's icy blue eyes met Yoshio's cyanide ones, sharply piercing through his irises. "Why don't you take one or would you like me to shove it down your throat?"

Takeru raised a hesitant hand on air, attempting to reach out and calm down his brother. But couldn't, for he was too afraid to hear another deadly remark.

Still calm and collected, Yoshio stood from his seat, turned his back. "You've got problems, man." he replied as he ran a hand through his hair before putting them inside his pockets.

And before Takeru could cut in between, Yamato had already lost it, his voice so sharp and high, fists as white as the snow.

"_Problem?_ And I bet you enjoyed screwing Mimi over with you between your legs, haven't you?"

"Aniki!"

"You took advantage of a fourteen-year-old, and now you've been deported back here just so you can fuck over her life again and mess with other –"

The rumbling of the table and broken glass had cut him off, and soon Yamato had found himself clutched in Yoshio's fist.

Takeru, and everyone else, could only watch.

Aoiyami Yoshio didn't say anything, and just held him by his collar. His blue eyes were ravaging, purple hair turned almost black. Yamato wasn't sure if it was cocaine or his anger that made him look more intimidating, but he wished he had just shut up his mouth. He was running out of breath, but he was in no mood to show weakness. He responded with a glare instead.

"What?" he managed to croak with bravery.

"And who the hell are you to have the right to talk about her?"

"A friend."

"Well fuck you, you don't even know anything!"

"I know everything," he spat. "Mimi told me,"

"Everything?" Yoshio's voice rose, and so did Yamato's collar. "_She used me!"_

_What the fuck?! _"Excuse you?!"

"That Tachikawa! She was all over every fucking band dude in New York!" he spat, his hands shaking. "I spent all of my money for her crack only to find out she's doing the same with the other guy!"

"No, _you_ used her," reinforced Yamato, remembering every word Mimi told him the night he found out. And Mimi cried that night so hard. "She was fourteen and you were—"

"I was in college and she ruined it by going to my place every night," he growled. "She was so insistent so I didn't object her, of course… her friends and family were so powerful how could I.. how could I, you know?! She was so insistent…And then her father.. the lawsuit.. I ended up behind bars!"

"_Lawsuit?"_ Yamato echoed out of shock. Mimi completely left _that_ one out.

"They took everything away," he croaked out of bitterness. "They dumped us back here."

Yamato's anger turned to confusion as he saw the tears in his eyes stream down to his shirt. It was eerie, creepy, and unsettling to see an assaulter look genuinely hurt. But his resolve was firm, and Yamato knew in his heart that Mimi was the true victim. He brushed Yoshio's hands off of him and pushed him away. He looked at his brother, who could only gape.

"No matter what you say, it's still statutory rape," Yamato managed to mutter. Still shocked and confused, he could not find the strength to say it loud. He stood up from his seat, legs almost trembling. He reached out for his guitar.

"Takeru." His brother followed obediently, head facing down as they both went for the exit. He glanced back at the man, who now sat back on his stool as he held his head. Yoshio's bandmates, the bartender and the waitress watched their every move.

_Fucking pathetic,_ Yamato repeated it over and over until Yoshio was out of his sight.

They never returned to that place.

* * *

Walk on their way back to their mother's place was spent partially in silence. It wasn't until Takeru mustered his courage to talk to his brother.

"That was quite more than what we asked for." Managed Takeru.

"I shouldn't have blown up like that," replied Yamato, who was now regretting everything. "I shouldn't have dragged in Mimi's name,"

"To be honest, I didn't expect you could be so crass," half-joked Takeru.

"Neither did I."

"Mmi's legs, of all her features. I mean.. fantastic legs, but.. _really,_ aniki?"

"I feel really bad for it." Yamato felt bad for several things today. The fight with her ex-boyfriend was just the surface.

"I won't hang out with him anymore."

"That's great to hear."

"But I'm proud of you, aniki." Comforted Takeru as he put an arm around his brother. "Defending Mimi like that.. makes me wonder what Taichi would do if he was in your place. Nonetheless, aniki, you're a real treasure!"

Yamato smirked, unable to look at Takeru at the eye. He just kept watching his footsteps. "I wouldn't say that if I were you."

"Now you're just being too hard on yourself."

"I called you for a reason."

"Yeah. I wondered what was so important that it couldn't wait later," laughed Takeru. "What is it anyway?"

Yamato stopped his tracks, looking for any strength left in him. Today was so bizarre. Everything that had just happened to him today was about Mimi. Mimi, Mimi, Mimi. She had plagued him completely. "Mimi and I.."

"What?"

"Mimi and I.. we kissed."

"You're kidding."

"I shit you not."

Takeru only stared at him, didn't know what to feel with everything that had just happened. He traced all the way to the fight earlier, then back to this freshly spoken news. _What the fuck. _

The younger blond turned around, continued to walk. "How did it happen?" he asked, his voice was void of any feeling.

"I was in her room." answered Yamato. Everything he said from that point on only made him feel shame. "I was teaching her how to play her ukulele. Then my guitar…."

"Then a _cliché_ happened," continued Takeru for him. Yamato thought it was such a terrible yet accurate way to put it. "Did you like it?"

"_Worse._ I loved it."

Takeru inhaled the spring air, trying to consume everything. He wanted to say, _'I never knew you were a slave to your hormones, aniki',_ but couldn't – not to his own brother, at least. How sad he felt, to know that he was right all this time – that there was something between Yamato and Mimi – whether in love or lust. If it were any other time, he would have rejoiced for being correct. Now he just wished he wasn't, for he knew Taichi does not deserve their betrayal.

He didn't pry anymore and just asked his brother instead. "Are you going to tell Taichi-san?"

"No." replied Yamato flatly. There was just no way he could. "How can I?"

"Good." snapped Takeru. "I suggest you try to get out of it soon, aniki."

"Why so?"

"Because if I didn't know any better I think you're about to fall in love with her." after what happened back at the bar, Takeru was sure it was bound to happen. His brother's sudden outburst earlier has proven so. "You're confused, and you've been throwing fits everywhere."

Yamato had let his words sink in. Takeru was right about everything and he didn't deny them. He himself was starting to reckon he's now only a millimeter away from falling over heels with Mimi. Though, what probably made him feel worse wasn't because she already belonged to someone else, or because that someone else happens to be Taichi – but rather, judging from the events of today, she might have been lying to him about everything this whole time.


	31. True Romance

**Author's Notes:** Apart from life demanding my maximum effort and full attention, creatively speaking it was a tough one with this chapter, I did my best to come full circle and I hope this explains some things. A forewarning, you may have to forgive me with the weight this chapter might bring, so please bear with me.

* * *

**Salad Days**  
Chapter Thirty-One  
_True Romance_

.

.

_The buildings and towers stood with formidable height, the sky not so blue as clouds hovered over her. She's been here before, not too long ago._

_Her eyes tore away from the sky as she felt a violent bump against her shoulder. _

"_Watch where you're going!" a cloaked man said in accented English as he kept walking, and only now did she notice she was in the middle of a crowd, with everyone heading in different directions. _

"_Excuse me!" another voice came, this time from behind as she hurried towards somewhere. _

_She, in turn, started to walk at the same pace, but her feet were taking her nowhere as she remained at the very same spot. With no clue why she wasn't moving forward, she started to run as fast as she could, desperately trying to escape the sea of strangers._

_._

_._

Mimi woke up panting in relief that it was just a dream, followed by a terrible headache. However, her mind was strong enough to recall everything about yesterday:

By the time Yamato left her room she spent the rest of the day replaying the scene all over – _for it felt really, really, really good_– and it didn't take her that long to talk about it with Michael and Cat, who were both _unsurprisingly _shocked. When nighttime came, she had fallen asleep while imagining the warmth of her pillow to be her blond friend_. Completely guiltless_. It was now morning, and a dream had just passed her by to make her remember.

Mimi had almost forgotten that Taichi was coming over today (Mama Satoe insisted her to bring over the boyfriend, and Mimi thought it was about time anyway). Since yesterday she could only think about that intimate moment - the kiss, his hands, _her_ hands - and how a guitar lesson just destroyed her morals without leaving her a stench of guilt: which was the very thing that became problematic for her.

How was it that she could still sleep at night, without feeling guilty whenever she thought of Taichi?

Mimi groaned out loud as she got up from her bed, messaging her boyfriend that she'll be taking a shower. Admittedly, this wasn't the first time such a thing happened. While dragging her feet to the bathroom, she remembered that she did earn herself quite a history of mischief. After all, no normal teenager can leave Big Apple without a bit of attitude.

And most importantly, it was just Yamato. _It was just Yamato,_ she reminded herself. Yamato, who happened to look extra good in a white shirt; who happened to be a victim of her teenage hormones.

"Of course!" snorted Mimi in her shower thoughts, remembering the very reason why she had come back to Japan in the first place.

It was just hormones, and there was no other explanation – or so she thought. By the time she left the bathroom, Mimi had forgotten everything, the memories pushed back to the forbidden vault of her mind. It was a problem no more, with a convincing – '_all is well'_. She repeated the thought over and over until her feelings finally agreed to it.

Taichi had arrived just in time, right after she had slipped in her chiffon spring dress. She came running down the stairs, jumping on her lover with a kiss, as if _all is well_.

"Ha! You missed me, didn't you?" he teased as he stuck his tongue out.

Blushing, she returned the gesture. "No I didn't!" she looked behind Taichi, and noticed that Hikari was there as well, looking absolutely out of place. Mimi wondered why she was here, but nonetheless welcomed her.

She bobbed her head and waved at the smaller brunette. "Oh, Hikari-chan,"

"Mimi-chan," greeted the brunette as she peeped over Taichi's shoulder. "oni-san forced me to come with him."

Mimi wrinkled her nose. "Eh?"

"He's scared of your otou –"

"Shut up, Hikari!"

Much to Taichi's worry though, he had already earned a strike from Keisuke. Pulling away from Mimi, he scratched his head, nervously laughing as he handed Keisuke and Satoe some homemade _onigiri_. Mimi instantly knew it was Hikari who made them.

"Taichi-kun, you are too adorable! Yamato-kun came in yesterday too!" admired the ever optimistic Satoe as she held Taichi by the shoulders. Behind Satoe's cheerful disposition, she had come to believe that her daughter has better company back here than in America.

Taichi turned to Mimi with a raised brow. "Yamato?"

"I asked him to teach me to play the ukulele you gave me," she answered abruptly, her words coming out as soon as she thought of them.

"Huh.. You didn't tell me he came yesterday," he whispered to her, still worrying about Keisuke Tachikawa. "he could have come with me today instead."

Mimi casually shrugged it off, as well as the memory that was so persistent to reappear.

"Yagami-kun, is it?" spoke Keisuke, who was sneakily observing Taichi while reading the _Asahi Shimbun_. He was sitting on his thinking chair.

"T-Tachikawa-san!" Like every boy encountering the father of his girlfriend, he almost went jelly-boned as he bowed to Keisuke. Taichi even reached out for a handshake, which Keisuke, of course, reluctantly took.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you," he remarked with a pre-plastered smile. "You were so much shorter than my daughter back then,"

Keisuke's interrogation lasted for a good solid of twenty minutes, almost to the point of stalling, for he didn't want Taichi to go to his daughter's room like Yamato did. Taichi could only be a yes-man in this situation. Mimi, on the other hand, was at the kitchen with Satoe.

"Well this is a surprise," spoke Satoe as she prepared raw fish. "I never pegged you to like someone like Yagami-kun."

Mimi, who was standing on a stool to get some condiments from the cupboard, almost lost balance. "Mama! What does that mean?!"

"You and Taichi-kun," answered a blushing Satoe as she held her own cheek. She remembered Taichi as Mimi's risk-taking, laidback leader, a sometimes charming, sometimes clueless boy who embraced fun and adrenaline.

But that Taichi she remembered seemed like a shadow of the past now. "He's so manly now that I can't believe it!"

Mimi giggled and blushed as well, landed on her feet as she went down from the stool. "He's working part-time right now as a paperboy."

"Where?"

_"Yomiuri Shimbun."_

Satoe crinkled her nose. The idea of a working student irked her. "Does he get enough there though?"

"I guess so?" answered Mimi reluctantly. "The bills are so high, mama,"

"I mean, I can't imagine. He's studying too.. Doesn't he ever burn out?" And there was just no way would Mama Satoe allow her dear Mimi to go through the same hardships she did.

"Not that I know of," she answered unsurely. "He never tells me… Which worries me."

"Well, at least he doesn't make you cry," Satoe said with a smile. Her daughter grinned. "Are you happy, at least?"

_Happy? _Mimi could only stare at the ceramic she took out, hypnotized by the swirls and ornamental decoration as her mind followed its intricate design. She didn't know if she could say she was 'happy', but she is very sure she's far from being 'sad' with Taichi.

.

.

_The first thing Mimi noticed was that t__he classroom __was __small,__ and__ the room emitt__ed__ both auras of chaos and freedom._

"_We've got a new student today and she came all the way from Japan. She'll be joining this class. Miss, please introduce yourself." _

_She quickly overcame her hesitation as she attempted to bring a positive reaction from the listless faces of her new classmates. "My name is Tachikawa Mi—I mean, Mimi Tachikawa – I've come all the way from Tokyo and I'm a really good singer! I hope I can all be friends with you, please take care of me!" _

_She bowed – in the truest Japanese fashion – and the rest could only giggle and snicker at her gesture. She raised her head, her smile replaced with confusion. Was there something wrong, or funny with what she just did? Mimi wouldn't know until tomorrow's lunchbreak._

"_Please take a seat next to Mr. Cooper," said the teacher. "Mr. Cooper, please raise your hand,"_

_As if swimming against a sea of judging eyes, Mimi passed each gander with her leftover confidence, and sat next to whom would be the first friend she ever made in the grit of New York. He was great, but nothing seemed to compare to her friends back home. For several weeks, she only thought of Sora, Koushiro, Takeru, Jyou, Hikari, Taichi, and even Yamato. _

.

.

Mimi snickered at the memory, remembering it took three cases of bullying and a broken locker before she truly considered Michael as a friend. Defending Mimi, of course, earned Michael several slaps from insecure girls and threats from their boyfriends. She realized then, that was the first time she felt happy since moving in the foreign land.

Michael remained her only friend until Catherine came during her second year in middle school. After all, for _gai-jins_ in New York, the same rules and welcoming committees applied. Catherine, despite her golden locks and ocean eyes, behaved way too differently to those whom shared her Caucasian features and skin color.

_Still.. I had it way worse than Cat_, thought Mimi, recalling how her family was looked down on by most of her non-foreign peers, as well as their families whom have served at the Second World War. It took Mimi quite a while to understand, and when the time came she did, she could only copy her parents' resilience.

_The 'melting pot of the world__'__ my ass…_

"Mimi?"

She immediately shot her head up. "Yes, mama?"

Satoe frowned, not liking the motherly hunch she was getting from her daughter. "I was asking you if you're happy with Yagami-kun,"

"Of course I am!" replied Mimi hastily.

"You spaced out," noted Satoe, knowing fully well that her daughter wasn't one to get lost in thought very often. "just hand me over the plates, will you?"

Mimi had almost forgotten the fragile object she was holding. She did as she was told, climbing down from the stool. She felt her mama pull her in to a quick hug and a peck on her forehead, along with a whisper of _"I love you"_. Mimi would have asked if there's something wrong, but she was too busy inside her own head.

Memory after memory played out as if watching old silent films; her capability of understanding just could not match to the ambiguity.

"I like Taichi-kun," quipped Satoe out of the blue as she started to prepare lunch. "Far better than the last one you've dated,"

The younger brunette was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"You seem… less _troubled_."

Mimi could only look away, her thoughts going back to Yamato, to Koushiro, to Taichi – finally to Aoyami Yoshio.

.

.

_The City of New York is deemed as a melting pot for a reason – and not everyone gets along, especially not Tachikawa Keisuke and the people from downtown. Keisuke and his family left Japan for the lingering danger of the Digital World, and he had high hopes for safety and security by going somewhere far away from the mainland. How wrong he was._

_Local news and rumors coming from Hell's Kitchen and East Village that reached Keisuke (thanks to his friends from the NYPD) had made him completely paranoid, banning his wife and daughter to go to such places: "You can go anywhere, shop and stay anywhere you like, just promise me you be loitering around downtown… okay, darling?"_

_How this registered to a rather homesick and resentful Mimi only provoked the rebel in her… a not-so unique feat among teens. _

"_Are you sure?" asked Michael again as they finally reached Bowery Street. He looked towards his two companions, whose faces were caked with make-up; though Mimi looked older with her thick eyeliner, she was still pretty. "Your dad's pretty uptight with anything that's downtown."_

"_He's become paranoid," spat Mimi as she looked around to confirm her stance that her father is just overreacting. "It's not even a skid row anymore,"_

"_Sure, of course it isn't…" agreed Michael, scratching his head. "But you know.. it's still stereotyped as such. Not to mention, there are still some impoverished areas."_

"_Take it from me, Mike. It's not that dangerous at all," assured Catherine, who was an independent yet privileged explorer. "I've been to several music and poetry clubs here. Everyone's really nice and cool,"_

_The blond only frowned. "I have a bad feeling about this."_

"_There's this Japanese guy I met, and he plays the guitar. He's really cool and he writes English poetry, too," giggled Catherine. "I think you'll like him, Mi,"_

_Only one detail registered in Mimi's mind. "He's Japanese?" _

"_Yeah. His family's been here for ten years now," Catherine replied, grabbing the brunette by the arm as they headed towards a music bar named The Tavern. Michael was very much obliged to follow them._

_To Mimi's surprise, there were no bouncers or security guards to welcome them, nothing but a logbook which enlisted the names of the attendees. While reading the list, she noticed that most people didn't use their names but their monikers or creative aliases instead. For some reason, she remembered a certain blond-haired, harmonica-playing friend all the way back in her homeland. _

"_Mimi and the Moon" – she wrote in the logbook._

_The bar was far from what Mimi expected. She ought it'd have a nicely-lit high-platform stage, air conditioning, and Warholian art hanging across the walls; there was a rather small and narrow performing space, a large electric fan, and graffiti art instead. For such a small bar, Mimi was rather surprised at the volume of people – as if everyone's meant to grind on each other. The performers don't get much space, too, and the music was so loud it bounced back within the four walls._

_It was the first time she felt discomforted since her adventure at the Digital World, and she wondered if she was a claustrophobic after all. 'At least it's bearable,' she thought to herself._

"_Where on earth did you find this place?" Michael asked out loud to Catherine, whom was leading them to somewhere. "It's so dodgy,"_

"_I just found it," Catherine replied simply. "You've been a New Yorker all your life and you've never seen this place?"_

"_I hate people," _

_Catherine chuckled. "Oh, the irony,"_

"_Where are we going?" asked Mimi, noticing they've already passed the seats and tables. _

"_At the back."_

_When Catherine said 'at the back', she really did mean at the 'back': the place was too small to afford its own backstage; the performers readied at a dead-end back alley instead – which was another one of the things Mimi did not expect._

_As Catherine opened the backdoor, Mimi could immediately smell the scent of nicotine, mint, and then some other things she could not identify. There wasn't much noise, but Mimi noticed that the people there had a thing for everything leather. _

_Minors the three of them were, none of the people there paid attention to them, except for this blond guy whom was friends with Catherine._

"_Aoyami!"_

_The man in all-leather turned around, and greeted the French with a toothy smile. "Neko-chan!" he greeted, then immediately noticing the two other minors – Mimi, especially. "I see you brought your friends,"_

"_This is Michael and Mimi," introduced Catherine, before turning to her friends. "Guys, this is Yoshio Aoyami, his band's the headliner tonight!"_

_Aoyami Yoshio waved at the two. "Michael and Mimi, is it," he greeted, before turning to the brunette, bowing at her before lending her his hand for a shake. "Kawaii na… anata wa."_

_Cliché as it was, Mimi felt her cheeks warm, knowing it was the first time in a long time did she hear someone say those familiar yet also foreign words._

.

.

She went back to the living room to see how Taichi and Hikari are doing under her father's attention.

She slyly grinned, finding it amusing how Hikari and her dad were getting along while Taichi sweated like he just ran across a football field. It reminded her how she introduced Michael and Catherine to her family. Her father obviously never changed his scare-tactics when it came to the guys.

"That's it papa, I'm going to take them away from you now," Mimi took them by their arms, dragging them upstairs.

"You know I never agreed with this," Keisuke said out loud as he directed to Taichi. "Except for you, Hikari-san,"

Mimi snickered. "You never liked any of my guy friends."

.

.

"_No."_

"_What do you mean, 'no'?!"_

"_I said no, Mimi."_

"_You can't be serious," she said in disbelief, immediately reaching the hand of the guy next to her. "Mama, you have to change his mind,"_

"_You are not dating this guy," insisted Keisuke._

"_He's Japanese," retorted his daughter._

"_So?"_

"_You said you'd agree if I find someone who is Japanese,"_

"_I did," agreed Keisuke. He did, and he remembers it very well. He did tell her he'd be fine if she would find a partner who is of the same ethnicity. But this boy, this boy on front of him, in his ripped jeans, weeded gums and tobacco-yellowed eyes – he was reminded of his former, troubled, less respectable self. "But not of his sort."_

"_Papa!"_

"Anata! _That's too much!"_

"_I'm sorry Aoyami-kun, but I believe you should stop seeing my daughter," _

"_Tachikawa-san, I think that is a bit unf—" _

"_Please get out of my house."_

.

.

"Mimi,"

Taichi had pulled her back from her thoughts, noticing that they've finally reached her bedroom. Mimi didn't notice it at all. "Hmm?"

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I am,"

"You were a bit out of it," said Hikari, whom Mimi had forgotten she was here at the first place. "And you seem awfully quiet,"

"No," Mimi shook her head, sitting on her bed. "I think I'm just tired… you know. Yamato's lessons."

How those words came out of her mouth almost made her want to swallow them back.

"Why was he here again?"

"He taught me how to play the ukulele. And guitar."

"He had the time to visit you here instead of helping me with my workload?!" exclaimed Taichi in disbelief. "I can't believe that guy."

"Why? Are you jealous, onii-chan?"

"I am."

"Yeah. I am jealous. He's not even replying to my messages nowadays,"

Mimi and Hikari looked at each other in confusion. "Are you saying you're jealous because Yamato spends more time with Mimi-chan than with you?"

"You can put it that way."

Hikari looked at him disapprovingly. "I can't believe you."

.

.

"_Your dad will flip the whole town if he finds out about this," said Yoshio as he held Mimi against her, protecting her from the winter air._

"_It's okay," she assured, taking the cigarette from his mouth to put it on hers. "He doesn't care about what I want,"_

"_You are stubborn."_

"_You love that about me," she said, before pecking his lips. The nicotine between his and hers created a bitter yet comforting aftertaste. "Can I crash in with you, then?"_

_He instantly pushed her away. "What are you going to do? You know my family won't take you in, you know I can't take you in and provide for you,"_

"_Why not?" she asked demandingly while tugging his coat, reaching for his pockets. She could not believe someone like him, some from downtown, would even refuse to take her in. I _

_He chuckled at her obliviousness. "You're barely fifteen, and besides – hey!"_

_Mimi had lifted a packet of white crystals from his coat, teasingly shaking it. "Well, I'm sure they don't know about _this_."_

_He froze for a moment, recalling these past months with Mimi. He was sure he didn't tell her anything about it. "How did you know?"_

"_It wasn't that hard to find out," she answered simply. "You're a mess all the time,"_

_He bit his lip, unsure if she was seducing or threatening him. "Just give it back, Mi,"_

"_No," she said, moving away from him, going near the alley exit. "Not until you agree to take me in. I can tell this to papa's friends, you know."_

_It confused him so, how she could still sweetly smile at him upon those words; but even so, he was yet to realize that he had underestimated her this whole time. _

_He weakly smiled back._

"_That's not how a girlfriend should treat her lover," he said, trying to appease to her. "Come on Mi, that's the source of my income," he hope she would give in, especially when she had the knowledge on his little brother's cancer. _

_Mimi's cunning expression immediately switched to her usual adorable, baby-like attitude. "You know how terrible my parents are, Yoshi-kun! I promise, it'll be like I don't even exist!"_

_And like always, he instantly fell for it. How could he not, when she was so damn fresh and pretty? _

"_Fine, fine," he agreed in defeat, taking her knapsack as well as his packet from hers. "You come with me."_

_Mimi smiled in victory._

"_Are you going to teach me how to use this, then?" she said, lifting another packet of coke. This time, it came from her pocket._

_She was just full of surprises._

"_Do you want to?" he hesitantly asked. _

"_It'll be an experience," she chirped._

_He convinced himself that this was out of his hands, and that she was acting on her own free will. And after all, hitting on the only daughter of the highest-paid banker of Wall Street is a story to tell. _

"_Mimi, light of my life, fire of my loins." _

_She didn't understand what he meant but she giggled, yet to find out in the coming days it wasn't just his kisses and his attention that she needed. _

.

.

Taichi did not know what to say, nor did Hikari, when Mimi suddenly tackled him into an embrace, eventually crying to tears.

It had been a long time since she remembered – _truly remembered_ – how it all went out from her recent flashback: to be the lover of just Aoyami Yoshio was still not enough to fill in her void. Longing for the connection she once had with her childhood friends, her shortlist of ideal boyfriends turned into a long scroll of forgotten names of musicians and artists.

And now there was only Yagami Taichi in her now clean slate, with the fear of Yamato's name inking in. Fear was creeping in, warning her that she may not have changed after all this time.

_How could I, how could I, _she guiltily reprimanded herself in midst of her tears.

By instinct Taichi tightened his hold on to her, soothing her. The Yagami siblings looked at each other, seeking each other for answers only Mimi could provide.

Hikari could only watch Mimi cry while trying to figure out a reason. Eventually learning that her brother would not speak as he did not know the right words to say, she collected all her strength to ask. She was about to, until her phone rang. She stood from Mimi's bed to go near the window, hence immediately passing the responsibility to Taichi.

He gulped, tried his best to be gentle as he stroked her hair. "Mimi?"

She replied nothing and continued to cry.

"Ahh.." this was more difficult than he imagined. "We can talk, you know.. you can tell me if there's something wrong."

She said nothing, but it did stop her from heaving. It went for a few moments like that, until she slowly lifted her head up, gave a weak smile. Her grin and pair of sad eyes shocked him how it almost broke his heart to see her face. "I'm sorry. I just remembered some things,"

"What things?"

"Sad things,"

"Well, I can't help much with so little information,"

"New York, and you know.."

He wasn't one to instantly pick up from hints, but with this one, he immediately knew. "Ahh.."

"I'm sorry.."

She was about to sulk again and he wasn't going to allow it.

"You don't have to, silly. It's okay. I'm here!" he grinned and pulled her closer to him, showering her head with kisses. He didn't have the right words, but this was the comfort he knew best.

Deeply moved and comforted with his affection, she smiled and hugged him tightly, already forgetting the reasons why she wept.

The relief didn't last very long, not when they saw tears streaming down on his sister's face.

Mimi immediately felt a kick on her stomach, a hunch she refuses to believe in. "Hikari-chan?"

She turned around, her hold on her phone very loose. "Onii-chan.. oka-san called.."

"What did she say?" he asked, but she didn't reply, too caught up with her hiccups and tears.

Taichi could not understand why she was now crying as well, and it frustrated him how two women important to him had cried on front of him today. He tried to sound calm and collected, but his frustration was louder: "What's wrong, Hikari?"

"Otou-san.. just passed away."


	32. Rain

**Author's Note:** There are no excuses, just reasons. Thank you for the endless support I keep receiving! You all encourage me. I hope it won't take me another six months or so to update this.

* * *

**Salad Days**  
Chapter Thirty-Two  
_Rain_

.

.

Without his bicycle, Taichi reached as far as Shibuya from Mimi's house. With no pocket money in him, he sat where the statue of Hachiko did, and rested there.

Blankly he watched the people pass by, hurrying amidst the collective noise. Taichi began to notice everyone slowly reaching from their bags to open their umbrellas and he started to wonder why they did – he couldn't even feel the cold rain on his skin – he only found the answer when he could hear the sky roaring with thunder.

As if the cold crept in his chest while it tightened, Taichi was paralyzed, eventually forced to let out his tears camouflaged in the rain.

* * *

This was the second time this weekend a boy walked out of Mimi's house without even a goodbye. When news broke of Yagami Susumu-san's passing, there were barely words to clutter the silent void, apart from Hikari's failed attempts to insist her brother to go to the hospital immediately.

Mimi didn't hear him leave, nor did she even hear the door creak in open, but Taichi was no longer there. She could only stare at her carpet, retracing yet again events from yesterday to today.

_Hey.. what's going on?_

She can't remember the last time she was lost in her thoughts for so long.

It remained quiet for half an hour, until she completely became at peace with everything. Fresh from her own tears, she searched for Hikari, whom was still wracked in disbelief and sadness. Now completely aware of the events and what must be done, she took Hikari's phone and dialed Yagami Yuuko's number.

She pressed the gadget against her ear, anticipating for Taichi's mother to pick up. _Where the hell are you, Taichi.._

"Hikari?"

"No, this is Mimi-chan, Yagami-san," spoke Mimi in her slightly cheery self. Mimi could hear Yuuko sniffling, and it made her sad that she was still crying. _Of course she's crying.._

"Ahh.. I've heard of oji-san.. I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. And thank you.." managed Yuuko in her now-raspy voice. "Ahh.. Is Hikari with you?"

She glanced to her side to check up on Hikari, whom quietly sat at the edge of her bed.

"Yes. She's just trying to feel better right now…" answered Mimi, carefully thinking of the words she would use to comfort her. "I'm taking care of her, so you don't need to worry,"

"I see. Thank you, Mimi-chan."

And now, for her main intention: "Yagami-san, is Taichi-san there?"

"Why no.. I haven't seen him since this morning.." replied Yuuko. "I'm actually expecting him and Hikari to be here with me right now."

Mimi had dreaded this. _Oh boy. _"I see. I'll bring Hikari-chan to you, Yagami-san."

A long heavy sigh came out of her once she ended the call. It was exactly like what she had expected from Taichi. _I guess I have no choice,_ she thought in firm resolve.

Mimi stood from her bed, took a light coat from her closet and draped it over Hikari.

"Let's go, Hikari-chan," she said, gently helping the younger brunette up on her feet.

As if her world shook, Hikari tried to fight the vertigo and held on to Mimi for support. "Where are we going?"

Mimi had put on her shoes, troubled that she had no idea where Taichi could have gone off to; nonetheless, she felt compelled to bring him back here, where he is mostly needed now more than ever. "We're going to look for your brother."

Mimi had no idea where else to look; they already reached the almost-empty metro, which was unusual but perhaps not quite. The downpour came in heavier every half an hour, and handling Hikari was becoming a problem.

"_Are you fucking serious?!_" the younger brunette, huddled in a borrowed coat, cursed under her breath softly but it was enough to unsettle Mimi again. The pressure of finding Taichi and keeping his sister calm was about to overwhelm her.

Mimi felt dizzy with the rather humid air; the raindrops, although cold, did not help. They've already searched every corner of Odaiba – from Taichi's favorite bicycle track to the school's football field. They've also gone to the nearest _Yomiuri Shimbun _branch; Hikari reckoned he went off to work to take his mind off of the news, but he wasn't there as well.

The two rested in a coffee shop, physically drained, but both knew they must not stop. Mimi and Hikari had resorted to calling possibly anyone whom Taichi would run to. Mimi had called Sora, Yamato and Jyou, all three of them coincidentally having not picked up their phones with her every attempt. Hikari had gotten in touch with their grandparents; breaking the news of her father's passing was heartbreaking, but asking where Taichi may be was more embarrassing. Taichi was not there as well. Eventually after many phone calls from relatives Taichi was close to, Hikari rang Koushiro. He was not with him as well, but Koushiro told Hikari he'd be at the hospital soon, and help.

"One more round?" asked Mimi in a slightly cheerful tone, taking the last bite of her barely-finished bread and a gulp of her coffee. She noticed hope slowly fading from Hikari's face. There was only exhaustion and resentment to be left. Hikari nodded nonetheless – her food remained untouched.

And so they went for another search – this time to the temple. They stopped by and asked the residing deity there to help them look for Taichi, before heading to Todai. They asked the security guards if they've seen a boy in a bike, but he wasn't there. Not even in Monja St. or his favorite park, Ueno.

It was already one in the afternoon.

"Maybe he went home, Hikari-chan," tried Mimi. "Do you want to go?"

"No," Hikari replied in the cold. "Let's just go. Oka-san is waiting for a long time now."

"Okay," agreed Mimi, trying to keep herself collected. She was not used to the listlessness across Hikari's face. "Let's just pass by the bakery first and bring Yuuko-san some foo –"

"I said it's fine, Mimi-chan." snapped Hikari, turning around to the street and hailed a cab. "Let's just go now."

"..yeah." conceded Mimi, feeling more pathetic than before.

* * *

When he came here, it was as if something had put Taichi on fire.

"How did you find me?" snapped Taichi. He couldn't believe it. Today was the worst day ever for many reasons, but nothing annoyed him more that the fact the rain stopped. _The fuck._ "Forget that question, answer this instead: why are you here?" he asked in contempt.

"I –"

"Guess what, I don't care what you say." he cut Koushiro off.

Koushiro sighed and looked up at the clearing sky, now unsure if this was the right thing he did. Should he have headed to the hospital instead?

_No, this was the right thing_, he reminded himself. How Hikari sounded over the phone was enough to prove the urgency.

He found Taichi atop Tokyo Tower. If there was one thing Hikari and Mimi didn't know among his favorite places, it was this. The tower he and Sora frequented since they were children. It was the most obvious spot if Taichi would not be at his favorite football field. Koushiro knew, because Sora would often ask him to fetch Taichi whenever they fought back in middle school.

"Hikari called. She's looking for you."

Taichi, who was leaning on the rail, did not budge.

"She's with Mimi."

He just blinked thrice.

"Your mother is waiting. You need to go to the hospital, Taichi."

A grunt.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

_Crack. _

Without warning, Koushiro felt his collar tighten, his feet on air.

"What's wrong with you, Koushiro?" out of anger, Taichi clenched his fists tighter, with the fabric of Koushiro's shirt in between his fingers. "You could have apologized sooner, you could have said _'I'm sorry for your loss' _before you've gone here telling me what the fuck I should do, you could have spoken out your sorry ass first to me too when you suddenly cut me off of your life – _damn you!_ What's wrong with you?!"

It was all too sudden, the redhead felt afraid; not because of the act of violence, but because right on front of him was a Taichi he never got to witness, up until now. He wasn't crying, but he looked as if he was for several hours – he could tell how red and puffed his eyes were, his nose was rouge as well.

Koushiro lifted a fragile hand, and held Taichi's arm as if a plea. Already aware he's not the best speaker or conveyor of feelings out there, Koushiro tried to look and sound as sincere as possible. He only felt Taichi's grip went snugger.

"I.. I'm sorry.. I was wrong for all of that," apologized Koushiro. "I'm sorry, okay Taichi? I wish I could offer you a better apology b-but.. that's not as important as this.. I'm here telling you that your family needs you at this very moment,"

Although still frowning, Koushiro noticed his face no longer wrinkled in anger, his grip slightly loosened. The fiery anger in Taichi's eyes was slowly being diffused and eaten by tears again; it astounded Koushiro how the water in his eyes remained unshed.

"Taichi.." he hated that he had to be the one to say it. "You have to face it."

Taichi instantly pushed himself away, let him go and faced the cityscape again. _And now you're here? _How he wished he had enough strength to speak of his resentment, but he could only do so few.

"Just go, Izumi."

Koushiro backed away, silently admitting defeat, already knowing he can't change his mind. "I'll head to the hospital. Don't worry. I'll take care of them. I'll ring Sora too."

When Taichi no longer uttered a word nor even glanced at him, as if going back to his own world where Koushiro once found him, the redhead turned around, headed to the lift. He turned his back, to see Taichi's head lowered, his shoulders heaving up and down relentlessly.

Upon a rare sight, Koushiro finally understood.

* * *

They found Hikari's mother alone, just outside the room where Susumu was once held. Hikari wondered if people are going to come just as they promised, if oba-san would be here anytime soon, if Koushiro would actually be here just as he said. She looked at Mimi, who was just as tired and broken as her. She wanted to thank her for being with her all this time, and apologize for getting caught up with this, tell her that Taichi should have been here with them, but she could barely open her mouth.

It was three in the afternoon when Mimi and Hikari arrived at the hospital.

"Where's your brother?" was the first question Yagami Yuuko asked. She looked fresh from the tears and sleepless nights. Mimi went over to comfort her.

Hikari shrugged, no longer caring about the brother who _abandoned_ them. "Oka-san.." she managed to croak. It was still hard to say the words. "where is he?"

Yuuko looked away, held up her palm against her lips, taking deep breaths as she tried to swallow her tears. "Inside."

Remaining listless, Hikari clasped the door knob behind them. The door to what was once the confined room of her father, now was the chamber of his deathbed. She opened the door, then abruptly closed it behind her, leaving Mimi and her mother behind.

The older brunette sat beside Yuuko, asked her if she wanted anything – "_coffee or juice?"_ – Yuuko shook her head and simply took Mimi's hand. The girl sat down, unsure how to respond. With the silence enveloping them both, she took her phone, saw three names - Sora, Yamato, Jyou - asking the same thing, just in different words:

_"Sorry for the late reply. What's up? Is there something wrong?"_

_"I only saw this now.. How are you? Are you okay?"_

_"Sorry. I was on my shift. You called ten times. Is everything okay?"_

But it was all too late for this now, thought Mimi. She dimmed her phone and put it back to her pocket, then glanced at the figure beside her. She put a comforting arm across Yuuko's shoulder, and allowed her to rest. _Taichi.. where are you?_

The shared silence between Mimi and Yuuko was broken when ceaseless whimpers from a familiar voice came from the door behind them. They wept again.


	33. Rain: At the Same Time

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**Salad Days**  
Chapter Thirty-Three  
_Rain: At the Same Time_

_._

_._

Yamato ran a cautious hand across his hair, still quite unsure of how to make out of this rather unexpected event he was now facing. It all happened by sheer coincidence inside the often-visited coffee shop near Todai; with the determination to look for better things to do than to think about a certain brunette, Yamato chose to spend his Sunday doing his coursework, and Sora just happened to be there, waiting for her new lover's shift at the clinic to be over.

Both had thought it would have been rude to simply dismiss each other's presence, and though they won't admit it, they were very curious of each other's personal lives. After all, a long time has passed since their parting; so now, they were sitting across each other, sharing a single coffee table, with Sora peeking through her book, and Yamato glancing to and fro his notebook.

"I heard you quit the band," started Sora, trying to sound nonchalant as she continued to read. "What happened?"

"They kicked me out." replied Yamato hesitantly, leaning back at his chair. He was about to leave it at that, when her red eyes shot at him, silently demanding reason. _Of course. _Takenouchi Sora never gets satisfied with one-liners. "…they said I no longer had the time for practice."

Sora frowned, sipped from her matcha. "I'm sorry about that.. I told you they weren't on your best interests."

Yamato smiled; sort of glad she remembers some little bits of their relationship.

"It's cool," he replied, trying to read the title of her book. He mentally chuckled when he found out it was _No Longer Human_ – Jyou's favorite book. He looked to her side, noticed her huge backpack being there. _Camping?_

"Mimi told me you're yet to attend college," he started.

Sora raised a brow upon hearing her best friend's name. She had never heard him address Mimi by her first name.. until now. _Curiouser and curiouser._ "Yeah. I do have plans already though. This coming spring."

"Which is?"

She gave him a lopsided grin. "I'll keep it a secret for now. Haha."

He returned the sarcastic smile as both of them returned to their books.

"So.. you and _senpai_, huh?" he implied as he worked on his math drills.

She raised a brow, then laughed. _Well, that was little early,_ she thought, not expecting him to actually be upfront about it.

"You speak too soon. We haven't talked for almost a year, Ishida," she teased. "Does it bother you?"

He shrugged out of nonchalance.

"Be honest, I don't mind,"

"I wasn't just expecting you'd be with Jyou, that's all," he spoke bluntly. "I thought you'd go for Taichi,"

Sora scrunched her brows. "That again, Yamato?" she smirked. "That ship has long sailed.. and sunk."

"That's incredibly cold. He'd hate it if he hears that,"

"What. I don't think you'd have liked it anyway if it was him."

He snickered. _Touché._

Silence once again enveloped the two of them, but it was no longer as uncomfortable as it was earlier. It was then Yamato realized how easy it was for him to talk to Sora without caution and pretension this time, something he found really hard around Mimi since the _thing_ – but maybe that was just it. Maybe he always felt that way.

He wondered what could have happened if they've continued remained friends from the start instead. Would he and Sora be happier if they initially pursued different people? He realized how much he truly missed her, and how he really loved her as he recalled their past. He would not trade the memory for something else.

_It was a good run._

"I've been meaning to ask you about something.." said Yamato sheepishly. "When we broke up, you know.. I think I know what I did that led us to falling out, but, I'm not sure. I just.. I want to know what you think. Can you tell me what your _'why'_ is?"

"I didn't quite expect that," laughed Sora. "Well.. I thought you already knew this, but okay… You were insanely jealous of Taichi, who's also your friend."

"I don't think you can blame me for that, Sora." replied Yamato, taking a break from his coursework as he placed his book and mechanical pencil on the table. "Even after all this time, you still entrust your life with him."

In turn, Sora closed her book. "I don't blame you for feeling that way, truthfully. When Taichi and Mimi started dating, I came to understand how you felt."

"So.. you are admitting you're still in love with him. Why are you with Jyou then?"

"No.. it's not like that. Taichi and I are best friends. And I'm happy if he is. That's enough."

Yamato grinned. He'd let her win for the time being. "I guess so."

"Now that you're on it though, how are you?" asked Sora, picking up her book once again.

"I'm fine."

"I mean, how are you with.. your love life?"

Yamato looked away as he watched the rain, his fist clenched just on front of his mouth. Sora did not like the heavy sigh he let out.

"That doesn't sound good," she pointed out.

Yamato rolled his eyes and bit his lip. "No.. no it doesn't."

"Can you give me a hint?"

"You can take a guess, I'll answer you honestly." He said as he reached out for his drink.

"Well, I've always been suspicious of your relationship with Mimi.. at least the one you have with her after we broke up."

"Oh.." Taken quite aback, he sipped from his coffee to collect his words. There was no point in lying to Sora. "Let's not go there. And besides, Mimi's with Taichi."

The ginger was quite surprised with his non-defiance. He would usually get worked up when he's being seen right through him. "You're not denying it though,"

"It doesn't matter if I do, to be honest," replied Yamato matter-of-factly. "You know I won't do that to Taichi."

"I know you won't," agreed Sora. "But aren't you worried how this would affect you so?"

"It's just a feeling," he assured her, although he couldn't convince himself. "And wouldn't you have liked that?"

"It's a shame though.." Sora flipped the pages of her book, recalling every observation she made of him after their fallout. She smiled. "I like how Mimi tamed you."

"Now what could you mean by that?"

She looked up from her book to see his face.

"I've never seen as happier than you do now." She half-wished he smiled so often around her back then, like the way she saw him with their friend.

It was as if Sora had said the magic words, and Yamato didn't like any of it. Sora's approval or non-defiance of his _fucked up _relationship with Mimi was the least he needed to recollect himself. The very thought that his ex-girlfriend Takenouchi Sora was all right of him having feelings with her best friend, who is dating her other best friend, was utter-_fuckingly-_terrible.

"Why are you saying this?" he asked, confused and frustrated. "I mean, shouldn't you be rooting for them?"

She laughed. "Don't get me wrong, Yamato. Of course I do. I was just pointing out the truth… besides. Wouldn't it be ironic if Taichi finds out you have feelings for Mimi? Turned tables, my friend."

The blond went silent for a while, unsure what to reply. _Turned tables indeed,_ he thought. What would Taichi say if he does find out?

_He can't find out. _

"Do you think Taichi is really in love with Mimi in the first place?" he asked.

"Of course. What's there for me to doubt?"

"You know how pathetic he is with his feelings." he answered, remembering Taichi's problems with opening up, and then there's Mimi, whom he personally diagnosed to be too unhealthy to be in a romantic relationship. "And you know Mimi's going to get hurt."

Sora bobbed her head to the side, trying to see the expression Yamato was making. He seemed really bothered that she sort of wished she didn't ask in the first place. "You should give him a little credit…" she replied. "And besides.. he's happy. And Mimi is."

What Sora just said had hurt him more than he expected. It was hard to understand – the pang of hurt; was he hurt because Taichi has truly found happiness with Mimi? Is he hurt because he is happy? Or that they do love each other after all, leaving no room in Mimi's heart for him? In any of those cases, Yamato was sure he would loathe himself ten times more.

"Are you okay?" Sora brought him back from his self-deprecating dwelling.

He looked up from his long gaze, ran a hand through his hair. "I don't like that I have feelings for her."

Sora did not reply.

"I mean.." he didn't know how to pick the right words, he didn't want to offend Sora, or Mimi for whatever he was about to say. "I could have chosen to love anyone else. Someone who didn't belong to someone else.. someone who wasn't your friend.. wasn't _my _friend.. someone.. anyone else.." he drifted away.

It struck her a cord, but not the sort that hurt her – just the kind that shocked her. The expression on his face had given it all away.

"But that's just it, Yamato," replied Sora as she looked on to her book, avoiding his gaze. "We don't get to choose who we love."

He didn't say anymore, and allowed the jazz music playing in the café to fill in the void. Yamato resumed to his coursework; Sora returned to her book – surprisingly finding that the protagonist of the novel she was reading reminded him more of Yamato than Jyou. Jyou, no matter how paranoid he could be, was far from becoming obsessed with harmful thoughts and vices.

"But Yamato. What do you plan to do with Mimi?" asked Sora out of the blue. She was concerned how this would affect Yamato's emotional health. A pent-up Yamato was an emotional monster with almost little to no control. "You should tell her how you feel, at least."

And when he heard those words, he almost choked from his drink. He furiously glared at her. "Are you insa—" he was cut off when he saw Jyou entering the café and approaching the redhead.

"Hey Sora. Have you been waiting too long? I was just about to—" the sight of Yamato caught Jyou off guard. The surprised expression turned into a warm greeting as he adjusted his glasses. "Well you're here!"

"Jyou," greeted Yamato back. "I ran onto her."

"It's a good thing," said Jyou, sitting next to Sora. "It was about time you two reconciled,"

The two looked at each other, surprised with Jyou's sudden remark. It confused them both a bit. Any normal man or woman would have gone out of their wits to see their lovers hanging out with their former paramours. _What could he be thinking? _they both thought.

"What's with the looks of you two?" Jyou noticed the two of them giving him a weird stare, although he sort of understood why. It was a non-issue for him. Knowing both of them very well, he voluntarily clarified. "You were friends since childhood, right? We all are. To be honest, the last get-together with everyone was so strange," he added, drinking from his coffee.

_Jyou always knew better._ The two smiled, relieved and content.

"It wasn't actually that hard to be friends with him again," replied Sora, who was grinning mischievously. "_He's _having problems."

The doctor-to-be looked up from his cup. "Which is..?"

"The one we were both talking about the other day," shared Sora, which caught Yamato off guard at how candid she spilt their 'couple habits'.

"Are you two talking behind my back?" he asked warily.

Sora rolled her eyes and looked at Jyou, who tried to look as innocent as he could while he drank more of his coffee. "Don't be offended, Yamato. You know everyone talks about everyone,"

"I know that," defended the blond. _Still.._ "I'm intrigued though. What are you two talking about me when I'm not around either of you?"

"We just talked about it though," replied Sora with a snicker.

Yamato grunted. Of course, it was Mimi. "You meant _her?_"

"Ohh!" Jyou blinked a few times, then looked to his partner. "So he already knows? He's aware?"

"Apparently he is and it is confirmed he has feelings for her,"

Jyou clicked his tongue as he swept the dirt on Sora's hair. "That's bad. Mimi's the worst person to fall in love with right now. That girl has no clue what she's doing,"

"You know I think otherwise, but I think it's still best we're all looking after her,"

"I haven't been able to meet with her in a while. She doesn't reply to me sometimes."

"She's dating Taichi, but you know Taichi's unreliable with feelings, and he's got bigger problems at the house. At least Yamato's often available for her," Sora thought out loud. "I wish I could find out what's going on in her head. Maybe Yamato knows."

"Of course he knows," agreed Jyou, who was also lost in loud thought. "But I think it makes it even more difficult for him to help her now that he's aware of his feelings.. and knowing that she's already in a relationship with someone else, who happens to be his best friend must…"

"Suck." finished Sora.

The blond across them let out a loud cough, catching both their attention. "You do know I can hear you two talking, right?"

The exchange between the new couple was something really radical for Yamato. It was almost refreshing to see that sort of mutual understanding. _Good for you, Sora._

"Sorry," Jyou apologized sheepishly. "We're just really worried, you know?"

Sora let out a loud sigh and looked out the window. She could only make several guesses as to why the distance between her and Mimi was growing. If there's one thing Sora was sure though, she won't ever hold it against her.

Mimi had left very little information about her past; but she did catch some news about Mimi's relapses. _She doesn't even return my calls._ "Can't rely on Taichi, not even Koushiro right now to take care of her," she said, before looking up to Yamato. "So.. it was nice to know you were at least by her side whenever you could."

Yamato rested his eyes on the table, watching the light dance around his drink. He understood Sora and Jyou's concern. It was something he was worried of too. Ten-year-old Mimi, the Bearer of Purity; seventeen-year-old Mimi, the Bearer of Many Secrets and Lies. "The Mimi I knew – the Mimi _we knew_ when we were children.. feels so out of reach now."

Jyou pushed himself back to the chair, letting out a deep sigh as well. "Man. So much has changed since college."

"Much?" echoed Yamato, whom was interested to know these 'changes'.

"I don't know," replied Jyou, cleaning up his glasses. "Group dynamics, I suppose. Would be nice if Koushiro comes around someday."

"To be honest, I'm very annoyed with Kou-kun on that," Sora turned her head to Jyou, whom agreed with her. They, especially Sora, thought it was very immature of Koushiro to suddenly cut ties with Mimi and Taichi.

The redhead turned to Yamato. "How is everyone else nowadays?"

"Takeru and Hikari are not talking."

"Why?"

Yamato hesitated for a bit, unsure if he should share the information. But thought anyway maybe Sora could do something about it. "Hikari confessed."

There was a pause before Sora spoke of what registered to her. "Don't tell me… he.."

"Yeah. The little coward." Yamato snorted.

Jyou scratched his head. "I really don't get the drama."

"We don't either."

The heavy conversation ended when Sora talked about her trip to Toyama this late afternoon. They left the coffee shop and roamed Todai campus, re-touring Sora around. She asked where Taichi's and Yamato's buildings are located, and they walked some more.

As she marveled around the school, Sora wondered for a while, lingered on her wishful thinking, if things went as smoothly as she and Taichi had planned since they were ten. Would they have continued to play football together? Would she and Taichi be more than friends? Then again, there was the alternative that she used to have; her and Yamato, meeting up at that cornered bench just below that tree, bringing him handmade bento boxes like she used to. She felt wistful, despite all of these were now merely 'what-if's, and she knew that's all that were going to be now.

By two in the afternoon they already headed to the bus station as they accompanied Sora for her ride. She was going for a three-day hike at the glacial trail before submitting her requirements for fashion school – which Yamato just learned from Jyou.

Sora had already boarded her ride by three o'clock. From her seat she waved at Jyou and Yamato. They waved back.

"She's changed a lot," said Yamato, as he dug his hands inside his pockets.

Jyou shrugged. "Was it weird when you found out?"

"Yeah," he answered. It was then when Yamato understood how this felt for Taichi back then. It will hurt a bit, and it will always be weird. And he also thought, maybe this was how Sora felt earlier too; when she found out he is in love with Mimi.

"It's weird, but I'm glad it's you." he gave Jyou a rare, calm smile when he said those words. Jyou returned the expression.

"I'll take care of her."

"I know." The blond snickered. _You don't have to tell me that,_ he thought with every confidence he had on Jyou. "Do you want to go for a drink?"

"Sure. Let me just check my mail. Haven't opened it since this morning," Jyou took his phone from his bag. Once the screen was illuminated, he was greeted with several missed calls and messages from Mimi and his brother Shin. He scrolled past through, until reaching the first messages Mimi and Shin sent. He froze for a while, then looked at Sora, who already had a worried expression on her face. _"What's wrong?"_ she mouthed to him.

Jyou could only lift his phone, and point it out to her. Sora did as she was told, and checked hers. The bus was about to leave as it closed its doors.

"Yamato," Jyou began very hesitantly. "did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Ahh.." _So he didn't know. _Jyou wasn't sure how to break the news. "Yagami-san.. his program failed. He's gone."

Yamato's mouth parted, but no words came out of him. He checked his phone, and saw Mimi's calls and messages to him. He shouldn't have set his phone on to silent mode; else he wouldn't be cursing himself for not knowing this any sooner.

The two men looked at each other, then to the bus window where Sora was visible; her expression of worry and shock remained plastered on her face as she and her vehicle were already heading for the distance.

Jyou let out a sigh. He could already foresee the chaos that was about to ensue as he watched the bus go farther and farther until it disappeared from their sight. With Sora gone, there was just no assurance that handling Taichi would go well. "This is such bad timing."

Yamato thought so too. He ran through his hair out of frustration, trying to come up with a plan and multiple back-up plans. "Jyou. Do you have any idea where Taichi could be?"

* * *

**Author's Note:** The next is chapter is a reunion with our full cast – at the funeral.


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